Solemn Trepidation
by Light Derived from Darkness
Summary: There is no escape. The entire place is snowed in, like the rest of the city, after a treacherous overnight blizzard. Now Laurel is stuck there, without power or warmth, with no day crew to relieve her. The prospect of being alone and cold is frightening enough, until she realizes that she isn't alone by any stretch of the imagination... [Rated M for Violence/Sexuality]
1. After a Frigid Night

[Please Note: This fanfic will deviate a bit from the established and fan-theorized plots of the video games a bit, so that I can put my own personal spin on the characters and storyline. Just wanted to put this disclaimer here so no one thinks I'm trying to stick strictly to the perceived plots of the video games. Hope you all enjoy the fanfic! It is rated M because of themes of violence and sexuality, so if either of those things bother you, please only venture ahead if you feel comfortable! Otherwise hunker down and enjoy the story!]

Laurel sighed a bit wearily, seeing small traces of her breath solidifying in the cool air. The heating systems were often shut off during the night shift to keep the animatronics from overheating, especially since they were run so heavily during the days. Because of that, though, she often had to sit in the cramped office in three or four layers of clothing just to avoid getting frostbite. And of course, the coffee machine had decided to stop working tonight, so she hadn't even gotten her ceremonial mug of caffeine to keep her awakre. The bags under her eyes felt like ten pound weights thanks to that; she'd have to complain to her manager in the morning.

It was only her second night on the job, and she was wondering why she'd decided this was a good idea to begin with. Actually, it hadn't even been her idea; her mother had insisted she do something 'productive' with her first winter break from college, which had been "mom talk" for "get a darn job." She'd found the Classified section of the newspaper left on her desk the first day she'd gotten home and had already been wondering why she'd left the warmth of southern California for this snow-ridden town in upstate New York. Several jobs had been circled, though she noticed her mother had placed a few extra rings around a job for an overnight security guard position at a local restaurant. Her mother had explained to her that it was the third incarnation of a long-standing but somewhat marred restaurant chain from her childhood; Laurel could even remember her mother telling stories about going to a certain diner in the 70s, and a pizzeria in the 80s as well, that were based on some characters from an old television show. Laurel hadn't been too interested at first, but it was the only job available around that didn't require previous skills or experience. Also, they were paying a buck and a half above minimum wage, so at least she was making more here than washing dishes during long shifts at McDonalds.

The manager at the current location had been fairly nice to her, if not a little leery it seemed to hire a female for the job. He explained that the only female staff they'd really had before had primarily either been workers in the old animatronic suits and waitresses who did private functions. Laurel had been adamant about working hard, however, and even recounted how these restaurants seemed important to her mother. Fortunately, he'd relented and given her the job after just a bit of persuasion, though she had a feeling it was in part due to her being the first, and possibly only, applicant for this job.

Once the job was secured, Laurel had spent a few days before her shifts started to familiarize herself with some of the history on this place. She'd even dug her mother's old video cassettes out of storage to watch the old "Fredbear and Friends" cartoon that she had always talked about. It was schmaltzy even for the 1970s, but she found the characters kind of endearing and cute.

The histories of the previous restaurants, though, were not as nice. The rumors of children and staff members being murdered were still being whispered around this town even two decades after the pizzeria had been closed down in the late 80s. In all truth, hearing about those stories made her skin crawl, but she'd chalked a good share of it up to just that: rumors. There had been an arrest made relating to some kind of violent crime, but the details on it were pretty faded at this point. It wasn't weird for her to think, either, that a place where kids and families were typically crowded into might be a possible prowling location for a child predator. It did make her feel a bit queasy though, and she was pretty glad that at least the new restaurant that she was working in, cheesily renamed "Freddy Fazbear's Funapalooza", now had a state-of-the-art camera system in literally every room aside from the restrooms. Though, with that said, she still didn't know why her manager had told her to stay put in one place at night and keep the doors locked into the office. Her job was just to make sure there was no one trying to vandalize or break into the place, and she had the police on speed-dial. Still, though, it seemed stupid that she had been forced to pee into an empty coffee can the night before since she was locked into the office overnight without access to the bathrooms. She'd have to look up the Labor Laws on that once she got home.

Her first two nights, however, had been pretty uneventful thus far, albeit kind of creepy. She swore that she saw those animatronics sometimes shifting slightly here and there, and sometimes she thought they were watching her or looking into the cameras. There were also odd noises; sometimes she heard what she swore were music boxes or chimes playing in the distance, though it was hard to hear. The cameras that were positioned all around the main "ballroom" where the banquet tables, prize counter, and the massive entertainment play-place and stage were often picked up noises from outside. The animatronics themselves were high in number too; according to her boss, they were several 'generations' of robots owned by the company. The ill-fated "Fazbear's Fright" attraction that had burned down a few years ago had destroyed a lot of the old décor from pizzeria, but somehow the animatronics that the employees had salvaged were saved. Apparently they'd been placed into a storage shed out back before the fire had happened. The company had also pulled an assortment of the Toy animatronics and spare parts out of cold storage as well and remastered both the old and newer animatronics. To Laurel, though, it felt like there were all the more eyes watching her there.

She sighed a bit and stood up; the locking mechanism overnight clicked, which meant that she could finally leave the office and head out. She just had to make one more round through the restaurant to make sure that everything was secure and she could leave. The entire place was still pitch black because of the automatic shudders over the windows, though she could see out the doors as the dull winter light shone in. As she approached the front doors, however, she furrowed her brow a bit and realized that it had snowed a lot harder overnight than she had originally thought; the snow was piled so high that there were only a couple feet that allowed any light inside, and she couldn't see outside even standing on her tip-toes since she was so short. She cursed a bit, realizing that since it was Monday, they likely hadn't even plowed the parking lot. How was she going to get out of here? Standing on top of a box, her apprehension was confirmed: her SUV was literally under a pile of snow, and the parking lot was absolutely buried.

She growled a bit, and somewhat nervously hit her mother's number on her cell phone, flicking on her flashlight as she started to do her rounds through the building. She heard her mom pick up, sounding groggy since it was so early in the morning.

"Hey mom…yeah, my shift just ended, but I have no idea how I'm going to get out of here and come home. It snowed like three feet overnight I haven't heard a damn car go by in hours because of it…no, I won't watch my language right this moment. I'm scared out of my mind here! This place is freezing and dark, and the weather's so bad that no one from the opening crew has even shown up even though they were due here a half hour ago…yeah, I wouldn't be that worried about leaving the place empty and locked if I could even get to my car, the snow's so high that I can't even get out the doors…hold on, my boss is calling me. I'll call you back after I talk to him…"

She paused and put her mother's call on hold, walking along slowly and shining her flashlight into the empty "VIP" party rooms that could be booked for birthdays. "Hello? Hey…yeah, sorry, I was talking to my mom…yeah, this place is about buried to the roof right now…what…? What do you mean the morning crew isn't coming in? Yeah, I know the streets are horrible…yeah, I'm not surprised that school is canceled either…look, I don't know what to do. I can't even get the doors open to leave, and now you're telling me that the guy that plows the lot out is stuck two cities over because of the blizzard…how are you expecting me to get out of here? I don't even know how to turn on the main generator yet…wait, you're breaking up…hello…?"

She suddenly felt her heart sink a bit as she heard the telltale crackle as her phone battery died; she was inwardly cursing herself out for having been playing games on it half the night to keep herself from drifting off, but if the coffee machine hadn't been broken, maybe she wouldn't have resorted to that. Now she didn't have any way to get ahold of anyone. None of the landlines that had been wired into this old building still worked, and she'd left her charger at hom like a boob. At least, though, her mom and boss knew she was stuck here; surely someone would come and bail her out soon enough right? She wanted to believe that, though looking out the window, she realized it was snowing extremely heavily again, to the point that it was a total white-out.

Well, there was no point in killing herself with stress for the time being. She was suddenly feeling warmer, probably from anxiety, and took off her winter coat and laid it over a chair in one of the private rooms as she continued doing her patrol. Not that she expected anyone to be coming by to vandalize the place in this weather, but at least it was something to do. She cringed a bit as she passed a fun-house mirror in the hallway, noticing the tacky purple color of her security outfit again.

She sighed a bit as she shined her flashlight along some of the animatronics quietly. "Looks like you guys are my only company for the time being…wonder if they'll finally come and dig me out of here when I've lost my mind and am just sitting in here talking to all of you…" she chuckled a bit nervously; in all honestly though, even though the animatronics still creeped her out a bit, she felt relatively at ease around them. Though in all fairness, it was easier to be out and about with them during the day when they were playing music and entertaining the kids.

She left the main ballroom and headed down the lonely stretch of hallway towards the back storage area, which was usually the last leg of her journey, at least according to her training manual. It was only accessible within the facility, since there were no windows or outside doors that led into the room. It was the creepiest place by far to her, though; something about how dark and desolate it was really made her feel apprehensive. She swallowed down her fear, however, and mustered up some resolve as she used her key card to unlock the door and stepped inside.

Almost immediately she could feel her eyes well with cool tears as the smell hit her first; at least, she thought it was the stench of old metal from the scattered spare parts, but this was…different than last night. Her manager had actually told her that the two oldest animatronics of the company had been shipped in the morning before after having been refurbished, though he'd said one had been put down into the basement for the time being while one was in the storage closet to get it prepped to be used again. She let out a yelp as her flashlight grazed over its massive form on the other side of the room, cringing as she caught side of what appeared to be yellow faux fur ahead of her. She managed to catch herself, however, and shined her flashlight ahead.

It looked like the older version of Bonnie, but yellow, and with somehow creepier blue eyes that were staring right at her. She felt like her hair was standing on end, even though it was motionless and slumped against the wall. As she stepped closer to it, she realized that the weird smell was coming from it; it smelled more like old, rusty iron than refurbished steel.

She made a bit of a sour face as she took a closer look at it and wrinkled her nose a bit. "Hope they do something about your B.O. before they put you on the floor…geez, and they said Foxy used to scare the kids. You're downright horrifying…" she murmured as she used her flashlight to look the animatronic over; it loomed so far over her that it had to stand between six and seven feet tall with ease. For some reason, though, her sense of apprehension didn't seem to go down like it did with the other animatronics, like she was getting used to them. If anything she felt more anxious being this close to it.

When she looked back up at its face, however, she winced and then froze to see its eyes were still fixated on her, like it had followed her to that point. At first, she figured she was imagining it and turned, wanting to quickly get out of there.

That was when she heard it, an almost sickening and loud thud as she heard the animatronic shift. Its weight was immense and she could hear what sounded like its feet shifting so that it was standing erect just a few feet behind her, and what sounded like a sort of exhale of stale, musty air from inside of it. She was too terrified to turn around and look back, even with the comfort of thinking that she was just imagining it, though that thought vanished when she felt a source of heat against her back and realized that it had moved closer to her.

"Don't look at it, it…it's probably just malfunctioning and on free-range mode because of the generator being wonky…don't freak out…it'll probably go into Stand-By mode like they said if I just ignore it…" she was saying this aloud, albeit softly, to herself in order to keep calm.

That was when she heard what sounded like a raspy, deep chuckle from over her head, and suddenly felt something warm drip onto her scalp. _"That's just what they tell you…so that you'll hold still long enough to make it painless…"_

Laurel suddenly let out a scream and went to run out of the room only for a strong hand to suddenly clamp around her throat, a mixture of warm fake fur and bits of exposed metal parts; when she was spun around her flashlight was shining right up onto the animatronic's face again, and now it was leering down at her with an odd, vile grin across its features. Her hand was shaking and so too was the light, feeling light-headed between fear and the crushing force of its hand around her throat. She was literally too terrified to say anything though out of disbelief; there was no way that…that thing just talked to her like it was…alive…she had to be having a nightmare…she probably just drifted off again at the desk like the night before...

 _"_ _I know what you're thinking…it just_ _ **has**_ _to be a nightmare…none of this can be real. They're just oversized toys used to amuse children…but surely, if you came to work here…you must know by now there's a lot more to this place and its history than amusement…"_ Its voice had a deep, human-like quality to it, though it was also heavily tainted with a grating metallic sound that gave it a robotic intonation. Either way, its words were making her all the more terrified. How…how was it self-aware? She'd been told that even though the animatronics had been rewired with new AI and hardware, they were still simple machines…

All she could do was shut her eyes, though, and pray that she woke up. She heard it laugh lowly at her again, if you could call it that; it sounded more demonic than hearing someone chuckle at something humorous. _"You can pretend that all of this is just in your head…I don't need you to be compliant…I never have."_

Laurel suddenly let out a strangled whimper when she felt its other hand suddenly trail along her side a bit, almost gently, like it was feeling her up. For some reason that sent her stomach into nausea overdrive, especially feeling the cold sensation of its fingers slipping underneath her blouse. She let out another strangled sound and finally found enough adrenaline in herself to fight, starting to writhe and lash out. She managed to kick a foot into his mid-drift portion, but the only thing that that accomplished was breaking a couple of her toes and causing it to laugh a bit more.

 _"_ _Feisty, are we? You know…there's a **distinct** reason that all those years ago, they never hired any more female security guards…"_

"If this…is someone's…idea…of a fucking joke…" she managed to sputter, though inwardly she was praying that it was, if only to give her some semblance of normalcy again.

 _"_ _I assure you…it's not...but, if you really want to be sure, I think that I can accommodate you…"_ Laurel's eyes widened in abject horror as the animatronic suddenly reached up, and torqued the upper half of its head back, which caused it to snap open at the jaw; inside, she could only see what looked like old, filthy circuitry…and some shredded bits of what seemed to be rotted flesh and bits of dried blood against the metal. The stench that had burned her nostrils initially was suddenly stronger than ever and she suddenly let out a horrified scream. This time, it was loud enough to escape the room and echoed out through the facility, though he clasped her neck a bit tightly to quiet her.

 _"_ _Well…now that you seem to finally realize the gravity of the situation…what do you say we cut right to upholding the **'spirit'** of this place and having ourselves some **'fun'** …?"_ Its gravelly voice held a malevolent tone, and she could suddenly feel the fabric of her blouse starting to tear under its grip. She didn't know which was more horrifying right this second; the fact that this animatronic was seemingly alive and free-willed...or that it was using said free-will to assault her…either way, she could feel her vision starting to falter as its hold on her neck was only getting tighter, seemingly to force her to lose consciousness so she'd have no way to escape at all, or call for help…not that there was anyone here to help her…her grip on its hand suddenly started to loosen as everything started to turn into a grainy, fluctuating blur…

She was jarred back to reality, however, when she suddenly felt something impact the large animatronic, and its grip on her loosened and she fell; instead of landing hard on the ground, however, something – or someone – suddenly caught her; her vision was still clouded, though she started to cough as her lungs filled with precious air again. Her throat was throbbing with anguish from the stranglehold, however.

"Arr, jus' breathe best ye' can, lass…" She heard an almost somewhat gravelly voice above her, though it had a far friendly tone than her attacker's; she was stunned, however, when her eyes finally cleared and she looked up at a very familiar animatronic.

"F-Foxy…?!" she sputtered incredulously. The animatronic glimpsed down at her and smirked a bit where he was crouching on the ground.

"Aye lass…me mateys an' di heard ye screamin' and came ta bestow some assistance…" His speech was still like a pirate's, in the same manner that he'd talk to children that visited Pirate's Cove and interacted with him during the day.

"Mateys…?" she suddenly jerked her head slightly and saw that her attacker had been forced away from her by none other than Freddy himself, along with the female animatronic Vixen. She was one of the heavily remastered animatronics, a white, love-themed and female version of Foxy that had once been crudely nicknamed "Mangle" before she'd been repaired. Her vocal registers still malfunctioned at times, so she was often in the repair shop, but at least she was no longer the tangle of parts she had used to have been.

"Foxy, get her somewhere safe…we'll keep him here for the time being…" Freddy said sternly back to his companion; Foxy nodded and suddenly took off with her, though she shuddered as she heard the villainous animatronic let out a vicious, mechanized roar at her departure.

She didn't have long to worry on it, however, before the culmination of the stress of the situation and also the fact that it all seemed like something worthy of a fever dream caused her to pass out as he escaped down the corridors with her.


	2. The Darkest Past

Laurel half expected to wake up and find herself staring down at the dismal gray surface of the desk, but instead found herself squinting her eyes under a set of harsh emergency fluorescent lights overhead. She almost immediately shot up and about near toppled off of wherever she was lying down, and probably would have if someone hadn't firmly planted their hand against her chest to keep her from falling.

"Whoa, calm down…it's okay. Freddy and those guys got you away from him." Laurel felt an odd shudder travel down her form as she glimpsed to the side, still disoriented, and saw Toy Chica's smiling faintly at her. It seemed a bit more genuine than when she was simply interacting with guests, though her voice sounded the same; that distinct mixture of both a generated human voice with a mechanized undertone. Laurel managed to get her breathing under control, though doing so, she realized just how much her throat was killing her now. She had to imagine that after that…thing's stranglehold on her she had to have a mighty bruise forming on her neck right about now. Still, even knowing that there was some distance between her and it didn't change the fact that now, apparently, the other animatronics had also come to life and were interacting with her. That didn't exactly settle her down much, in spite of being relieved to have been rescued.

Even now she was choking a bit trying to come up with a response, even though Toy Chica didn't seem at all dangerous at the moment. Eventually, she managed to form a few words that were half-strung together.

"Y-you're all…alive…? Or…self-aware…? Or something…?" she managed to sputter after a moment. Toy Chica looked a bit baffled, but then nodded a bit. At least the animatronic's solemn expression put her more at ease. She couldn't sense any sort of malice from her.

"Not alive, but…self-aware, yeah. Most of us have been for a long time now," she replied calmly. "That's why we usually were looking at the cameras when you were working the last couple nights…we're…usually kinda leery about new security officers."

Inwardly, Laurel was starting to realize why it was so damn hard for this place to keep a night watchman when this kind of craziness probably had been occurring for decades now, but at the same time, she almost felt mystified that it was happening at all. Her manager had said that even the oldest of the animatronics had been ahead of their time when it came to their technological capabilities, but this went beyond what she'd considered them capable of.

"W-well…that…does explain a few things, I guess…" Laurel murmured; there was a ratty infirmary blanket wrapped around her that she pulled a bit tighter to herself out of instinct. "Well…at least I'm away from whatever that…that thing was…who was it…he, anyways…?"

Toy Chica's expression darkened a bit, her gaze somewhat lowered. "He calls himself Springtrap…he and Golden Freddy are the two oldest animatronics that were originally commissioned by this company years ago to be used in their restaurants. But...both of them are…tainted, in different ways…"

"Tainted…?" Laurel felt her stomach sink a bit at Chica's drop in tone.

"It's…it's a really long story, trust me on that for now…it'd be better for us to tell you all together because…well, it's a lot of stories that all sort of came together in a really dark way, over a lot of years…let's worry about getting you feeling better first though…" Toy Chica paused and stood, moving to the first aid station; Laurel finally realized she was in the actual infirmary, though calling it that seemed like an overestimation. The "First Aid" station was little more than a half-converted storage closet that had an old twin-sized mattress on a trundle and a cabinet with bandages and ice packs. Toy Chica reached into it and took out one of the latter. She pressed into it with ease and popped the small sack that released the cooling agent, then wrapped it in a paper towel before handing it to Laurel. She murmured a small, but genuine, thanks before she took it and pressed it to her throbbing neck.

"I owe you guys one way or another for getting me out of there, as weird as all of this is…I don't even want to think about what he might have done if they hadn't…"

"Let's worry about that later…" Toy Chica's voice faltered a bit; Laurel could tell she was trying to be encouraging, but there was a rather dismal air hanging over them. "Try not to be nervous for the time being though, we'll do our best to keep you safe from him…"

Laurel blinked, and looked at her a bit questioningly. "I thought you said you guys were…leery about security officers…if that's true, then why are you guys trying to help me? I…I mean, I can only assume you guys have…sort of terrorized the last sets of security officers out of here pretty routinely if they were willing to hire a college freshman with zero experience…"

Toy Chica smiled a little sheepishly, ruffling the small faux feathers on the back of her head. "In all honesty…it's actually because you're a girl…"

Laurel looked confused. "Because I'm a girl…? I mean, I know some guys are jerks, but…so are some girls…"

"It…kind of ties in to everything else…listen, I promise once the others come back we'll get everything figured out and try to get everything explained to you as best we can, all right?" Toy Chica replied, resting a hand on Laurel's shoulder. Laurel sighed a bit, but nodded.

It was hard not to want answers right this moment, though, but she sat there icing her wound quietly for a few more moments before the two of them could hear the sounds of others approaching them. At first, Laurel was nervous, since she had no idea what had happened after Foxy had snagged her, but it was some of the others returning.

Freddy emerged into the infirmary first, pushing the door open as Foxy helped Vixen inside. The female animatronic looked somewhat damaged, a large claw mark across her left optic that had driven her artificial eye inwards. Foxy helped her to slump down against the wall and seemed to be rummaging looking for a repair kit.

"Arr, tha' bastard's always up ta no good...he's a nasty bilge rat, tha's fer certain…" Foxy muttered angrily, managing to locate a screwdriver amongst some of the miscellaneous tools leftover from the room's days as a closet.

"Let's just feel fortunate he didn't manage to do more damage than he did…" Freddy replied, though his deeper voice sounded slightly troubled in spite of his words. He had suffered what looked like some minimal damage himself, though he made no move to fix anything right away.

"At least we managed to get her aWAY frOM HIIIII-" Vixen paused and sputtered a bit; it seemed like her vocalization box was still malfunctioning badly. Her voice normally was pretty soft and melodic, but when it malfunctioned, it sounded like screeching feedback from an old AM radio.

"Jus' take it easy lass, Foxy'll getcha patched up…" Foxy said, carefully using the screwdriver to 'pop' her optic back into place where it had been gouged out of calibration. "Yar, we'll have ta abscond some thread an' a needle to make some repairs to ye…"

"I…I'm sorry you guys got hurt, you know…coming to help me…" Laurel said a bit sheepishly; it felt a bit odd to feel guilted that what she'd perceived as inanimate and lifeless animatronics had been hurt for her sake, but it was happening nonetheless.

"It's not your FAULT," Vixen said, wincing a bit when Foxy readjusted her optic back into place, though she blinked slowly and smiled. "That's MUCH better th-thanks…"

"We really need to look into getting your vocal box repaired sometime…" Freddy said as he knelt down, observing as Foxy repaired what he was able to of her injuries.

"The technicians have tried…it's just never worked correctly ever since my stint in Kid Cove…" Vixen sighed, her eyes sagging a bit.

"Don' worry lass, we all make due with it," Foxy smirked a bit, tapping her cheek a bit with his hook to comfort her; it seemed to work since she smiled a little warmly.

Laurel just watched their interactions with silent fascination; this seemed to go beyond just being self-aware…they each had their own distinctive personalities. Management had never mentioned anything about this before…could it be they were really unaware of it themselves? Also, that meant that each of these characters had to essentially operate as automatons during the day, when patrons were present…she couldn't even fathom how mind-numbing that would be for beings that had this level of thought and personality. It was almost hard to take in.

She honestly didn't know though why she was so calm; you'd think that after having come to realize that the animatronics that she'd been left to "guard" were actually, for all intents and purposes, thinking and self-sustaining beings would freak her out just a little bit more. But in all truth…something about it seemed to make a lot of sense. This really seemed to explain to her how this chain had undergone so many disastrous events over the years if, like Toy Chica had told her, they'd been self-aware and 'conscious' now for decades. Of course, for every question it did answer, it opened other cans of worms; how exactly did all of this happen in the first place? How did they obtain so much personality and intelligence?

She was shaken from her thoughts when she realized that someone had plopped down beside her on the old infirmary bed; the old trundle cringed a bit with strain as Foxy sat down beside her and took a moment to observe the bruising on her neck.

"Yar, tha bastard gotcha good didn' 'e?" he said, looking a bit worried for her.

Laurel shook her head a bit. "I'm okay, it's just some bruises…he would have done a lot worse if it weren't for you guys…" she said, mustering a weak smile. Foxy returned it almost instantly.

"It weren' nothin' lass…'n all truth, when when we heard that thar be be a female watchman in tha crow's enst, we were nervous that something might happen to ye because of tha' vermin... none of us wanted him aft here again, but this damn company keeps making thee same mistakes over and over again."

Laurel nodded. "Toy Chica told me that his name is Springtrap…my manager, he told me he was one of the original animatronics from…all the way back in the 70s, at the old family diner that started this chain…"

"He's right, he is one of the oldest animatronics, but he's also one of the most dangerous…" Freddy said, a bit ominously, as he helped Vixen stand up; she seemed to be doing better now, though she leaned on him for support. "

"I don't understand though…all of you seem, well…pretty darn nice and friendly, in spite of the rumors about this place that have been around for ages now…why's he such a prick?" Laurel asked; she felt weird making light of it, but she was trying to lighten the mood a bit.

There was an uneasy silence in the air for a moment, almost suffocatingly so. Eventually Freddy spoke, after a somewhat drawn out sigh. "The truth is…it all goes back a long ways to when the first restaurant opened…it's…a really long, and sorted, history…I'm sure you know that by now."

"Hey…I'm trapped here for the time being. You can explain it to me if you want to, but…I do understand if it's hard to talk about. I can…really only assume that given how all of you are acting that…some of those rumors that have been around for a long time now are true…"

"The rumors only scratch the surface, really, of what happened here…" Toy Chica said. "If you're talking about there being murders, then yeah…those are all true. But what happened after the first ones until now is what's caused all this to be what it is."

"I'm listening…" Laurel replied; she actually felt nervous to hear it all for herself, but it was unlikely she'd really fully understand the gravity of all of this, and how these animatronics and their personalities had come to be, unless she knew the backstory behind it.

Freddy sat down, but seemed prepared to explain it even though it seemed painful for them to do so.

" _The diner had been in operation for about four years when the first series of murders happened. This was after the children's cartoon had become very popular; there had even been a feature-length film by that time, so it made sense that businesses were starting to open relating to the characters. Fredbear's Family Diner, though, was the first one built across the country. For the first few years, everything was fine and normal. The animatronic suits were dangerous, but for the most part, the managers were trained to keep the employees from killing themselves while wearing them._

 _The first death was actually a year before the first series of children were murdered. During the fall of 1977, a female employee had donned the Golden Freddy costume in order to host a private birthday party for the child of some big-name politician who loved the franchise. She had only used the suits a couple times before, and she arrived to work late because of a traffic jam. When she got to work, her manager raked her across the coals and all but forced her into the suit to get to work; she was upset, though, at how she was treated since she was already stressed out. When she walked into the room with the kids, she started to cry because of the strain…that caused her to accidentally breathe onto the spring lock mechanism of the suit that held the mechanical components against the exoskeleton to let employees wear them safely._

 _She was killed instantly when the cross-beam for the optic sensors was driven through her brain._

 _The diner shut down for around a month after the incident. The suit was sent out and the employee's remains were gutted from it, and it was reupholstered so they could continue using it, since they were so expensive to make back then…the suit had more value, I guess, than the girl did that had died in it. Her soul, though, never left the suit, though it was dormant for a long time afterwards._

 _This event, though, was what triggered everything else that eventually came to pass. Until that point, no one really knew how dangerous the animatronic suits were, nor that they had such a strong capacity to completely emulsify human flesh and bone if they were triggered with someone inside. Unfortunately, this knowledge was horrifying to everyone besides one person: the old security manager of Fredbear's Family Diner, William Afton._

 _William was…eccentric to some people, or at least, they was how they perceived them…inwardly though, he was a sociopath who hated that he'd been forced to take 'meager' job. No one really knows where he came from before he worked for the diner, but he was always…creepy. Management trusted him, though, because he had such an intricate knowledge of how to keep the restaurant safe. In reality, though, he was just amassing information to do something terrible._

 _William always hated the children that came to the restaurant in particular. Behind closed doors he called them and their families every filthy name in the book. There's always been speculation that William, before he came to work at the diner, might have been a child predator himself that simply detested his victims…back during the 1970s, there wasn't really any screening for sex offenders, so if he was, he could have gotten hired with relative ease._

 _His first victim was a little boy who was alone outside of the diner one night, waiting to be picked up after a party by his parents. There was another party going on inside, but no one saw the child be murdered, even though his body was left right on the walkway into the restaurant. His throat had been cut from ear to ear to the point that he was almost decapitated. He was found curled up like he'd been positioned in a fetal pose, holding a doll he'd won at the prize counter earlier during the party. He'd picked out a marionette puppet as his prize…and that was where his soul eventually found its way. Because he was the first victim, the Marionette has arguably been here the longest aside from the spirit of the dead employee in Golden Freddy._

 _The murder of the next four children, though, didn't come for another few months, until the summer of 1978. This was when Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria had opened as a side-chain to try and keep the diner's franchise afloat after the death of the employee and the first child. By this time, William had been moved to the new location to help train the staff on how to use the new suits that were being developed for the rebranding. Williams hatred of children aside, though, he didn't kill this group because of pure malice…rather, they caught him doing something awful. It was a group of five children that were exploring the diner that discovered him in the back room, where the cameras were…he was raping the young female watchman that was employed there at the time. He was known for taking advantage of the young, sometimes teenage staff there. She was crying and ran away when he was spotted by them. They ran away from him, but he already knew, in the back of his mind, how to keep them from ever telling anyone what they saw._

 _That was when he first donned the Spring Bonnie outfit. He carefully dressed himself in it, and found each of the five children, pretending to lead them somewhere safe. In reality, he did lead them into the designated Safe Room of the diner, which was there to give missing children a safe place to go if they were separated from their parents or party. Instead…William led them back there, locked them in, and murdered each and every one of them. He cut all their throats in the same crude method he had the first boy he'd killed the year before._

 _The children were noticed missing pretty quickly by their parents, and everyone searched frantically for them, but William had already covered his tracks. When the parents and employees first searched outside and around the property for the kids, thinking maybe they'd wandered out there, he quickly hid each of their bodies in the five animatronics that he had available to him at the time. By then, the newer animatronic line had been introduced for the new pizzeria chain: Freddy, Chica, Bonnie, and Foxy…the four of us, the fifth child of the incident being the one who died the year before._

 _Their souls roamed for a short time in the pizzeria, their bodies rotting inside of the animatronics. Eventually, the Marionette, who had first found a way to place his soul into an inanimate object tied to the place where he died, aided the children and attached their souls to suits to keep their spirits from passing on before their killer could be apprehended. Eventually people began seeing blood and mucus seeping from the suits as decomposition happened, and the suits ere discontinued temporarily…and sent somewhere to be 'reupholstered' again. By this point management knew that someone had led the children to their demise using one of their older suits, so Golden Freddy and Spring Bonnie were both retired completely from the chain and placed into the basement's storage area._

 _During the time that the suits were sent away to be cleaned, the pizzeria did another rebranding and invested a lot of money into new animatronics, the "Toy" series. These were modeled to be more kid-friendly and colorful, and since they were independent of needing anyone inside of them to control them at all, they could be smaller and less intimidating. William, of course, still worked for the company at this time and was still continuing his abuse of his employees and the children that came to the restaurant. He'd covered his tracks to the point where one of the night guards under his watch had been arrested for the murders, who had been on watch during the evening that they happened._

 _The next four children that died were purely for sport, in 1984…William, this time, donned the Golden Freddy suit that had been down in storage and lured them once more into the designated Safe Room, and killed them. Same thing again…bodies and souls this time forced into Toy Freddy, Toy Bonnie, Toy Chica and Balloon Boy. This was during the time when Vixen was known as "Mangle" because she was constantly being torn apart by the toddlers in Kids' Cove. The same thing happened, again, once more with the rotting and the placement of their souls within the animatronics. This was when the "Safe Rooms" were boarded up for good after management realized that one of their own had been committing the murders off-camera. The original employee that had been convicted was eventually released, but there was still no evidence to incriminate the true perpetrator. The old Spring Bonnie suit was put into it was well and left to rot there, since it was marred with disrepair._

 _The pizzeria didn't close down until 1987, though, when the Golden Freddy suit was brought out of storage to be used up on the stage. A little boy was shoved into Golden Freddy's mouth by his older brother and his friends as a cruel joke, and the jaw mechanism malfunctioned and crushed the boy's head, killing him instantly. That wasn't what became known as the "Bite of '87" though…that incident happened only a couple months after the boy died. His soul became attached to Mangle's body, which was unstable and prone to twitching and lashing out. The Bite of '87 happened when a night guard was switched to the day shift and was keeping an eye on a group of children. Mangle suddenly reacted defensively, and lashed out and bit onto the employee's head and face, tearing apart his frontal lobe. The employee somehow survived the attack, but by this point, the ceaseless amounts of death and trauma had taken their final toll on the chain, and it was closed down for good._

 _William, however, remained behind to keep an eye on things while the property was liquidated. By this point…it seemed apparent that he was aware that his victims were still incarnated in the suits, somehow, even if it was in his memories. He detested the animatronics for that, and during his time with the entire place closed down and left to decay, he dismantled the animatronics into pieces and left the exposed bodies of the children to be eaten by the rats. He did all this on the last day of his job, so that his past employers wouldn't have any inkling of what had happened there._

 _Doing so, however, released the spirits of his victims. He'd been able to destroy their minds and bodies, but not their souls. When he dismembered the suits, the spirits rose up against him. He panicked, and managed to run into the abandoned Safe Room where the Spring Bonnie suit had been sealed into. They cornered him there, but he managed to dress himself into the suit, thinking that it would keep them from harming him. He became cocky and malevolent, however…and when he laughed at their spirits, he accidentally triggered the spring locks that had barely been keeping the suit in one piece all those years._

 _He didn't die so quickly; the suit was in bad shape, so it slowly stabbed him to death, bit by bit, tearing him apart. The spirits of the children moved on as he died, knowing that they'd finally managed to catch the real, true culprit who'd caused so much death and misery. William eventually bled to death in the suit, and his body rotted there for years. There was a cursory search for him, but like with the children…the company that he'd used to commit so much harm had as little regard for him as they had his innocent victims._

 _The company eventually reclaimed most of the animatronic parts and reconstructed them for rental purposes, but then Freddy Fazbear's Fright opened a year or so ago. The company hadn't salvaged the Spring Bonnie suit, and it was salvaged for the attraction. By that point, however…William's cruel and malicious spirit had already incorporated itself into the suit, and had taken on the moniker "Springtrap" after the mechanisms that had originally killed him. The attraction was short-lived, however; Springtrap purposely set fire to the place so that the entire building would be gone and eliminate every last bit of what had transpired years beforehand._

 _Then this year, a new investment company bought out the rights to the cartoon and franchise of Fredbear and Friends, and started a new vintage restaurant chain that was independent of the old one…thus far, it's been successful as a company…but there are still the rumors, and there are still people who are closer to the truth of knowing what happened than they realize._

 _But worse than its past…Springtrap was restored and now he's stronger and more aware than ever before. William's spirit is still very much within the suit and knows now he has a fool-proof way to continue spreading violence and suffering to anyone he wants. There's no longer any physical body or identity to him that can be pinpointed…he no longer has to hide because he's now one with what he used to cause so much death before. The people that revived this franchise, and restored everything that they could from the old locations, have no idea what they've done. Even though the spirits of the children that once were inside of our animatronic bodies are gone, we still have a part of them, and their humanity, inside of us…we saw their memories, their dreams, the innocent aspirations that were lost when their lives were viciously ended. Our minds and intelligence of the world grew in lieu of theirs, almost as though we're living somewhat vicariously through what their lives could have been if they hadn't died…now, though, it's all we can do just to try and keep everyone safe again from Springtrap. He's different from William…he's more dangerous. We don't know how much he has in the way of memories of who he was before…but he has William's malice, bloodlust, and cruel lack of inhibitions and morals. He lives just to derive pleasure from hurting others…and that means he's more dangerous here than any person that management thinks they're keeping out with their security systems…"_ Freddy eventually quieted, looking pensive; needless to say, Laurel was stunned into silence herself, taking all of that in. It was so much worse than what she could have ever imagined had happened here.

"There's one thing I don't understand…you say he's evil and malicious, and I've seen that firsthand now…but surely he knows if he causes more death and harm here, it's just going to have the same effect as before. The place will eventually lose money, be shut down, and probably be left to ruin once again…and then he'd lose all his access to more victims…"

"That's just it…he doesn't "need" anymore children to torment…he wants to torment **us…** to him, we're relics of the past he hates and also a symbol of all the terrible things he got away with. He'd be more than happy, now, to have us all entombed here forever and find ways to torture us further, though how he plans to do so…we don't know…and now, he has the last thing he could probably ever want that's alluded him now for years…"

It felt like there were icy pinpricks running through Laurel's veins, as she had a pretty good idea of what he was implying right now. "Wh-what's that…?"

Freddy looked at her with a stern, but almost pitying, gaze. "You…he might be happy tormenting us for entertainment, but he still has the same lust for hurting and manipulating young women that he did when he was alive…"

Laurel felt sick, and withdrew into herself a bit. "B-but that's impossible…for him to…to keep me here…eventually my mom and family will come looking for me…and the place is just snowed in probably for a few days…how…how could he keep me here…?"

"This old warehouse that they converted into the Funapalooza has an entire underground system of storage rooms and access tunnels, and they're making all kinds of new additions that go even further underground..." Freddy began, and Laurel's color drained from her face.

"So…you mean…"

"Yes…he plans to somehow bring you down there, into the darkness, where no one will be able to find you…and keep you trapped here, like the rest of us...

Forever…

[ **Author's Note** : May or may not have read "The Tale of Desperaux" a little while before writing this chapter...if you've read that book, you can likely see the influence of it in the last bit of this chapter. :P This fanfic will definitely be getting quite dark, violent, and sexual in later chapters, but I will make sure to post warnings whenever there are instances of it, in case people have triggers relating to it! I'm having a lot of fun with this so far though, hope you all are enjoying reading it!]


	3. See For Yourself

Laurel usually found pacing to be a good way to alleviate stress whenever there was something bothering her, but this time around, all it seemed to do was compound her fears.

It probably wouldn't have been as bad if she had access to the generators and could get the electricity, and the furnace, turned back on. Unfortunately, they were located outside of the main facility in a shed with many metric tons of snow between her and it. She had felt miserably cold to the point where she'd put her winter coat back on before she'd started making some laps around the building. It had been somewhat at the urging of Freddy, as he and the others wanted to discuss what the best course of action might be for her; she could only assume perhaps there were some more unpleasant topics cropping up if they didn't want her there to overhear.

She became aware that someone was following her not long after she'd left, however, and instantly felt on edge as she froze outside of one of the VIP rooms and whirled around. She'd been half-expecting to see Springtrap there, looming in the darkness, but instead was relieved to see it was Foxy, following her at a healthy distance. He paused and gave her a slightly sheepish look.

"Heh, sorry about tha' poppet, thee others wanted me to keep me good eye on ye...Freddy thinks it'd be wise to make sure ye aren't alone as much as possible..." he said, approaching her.

"No, no…it's okay. He's probably right…I'm still learning the layout of this place after all, and besides that if Springtrap did show back up he'd probably drag me down into the basement before I had time to so much as yelp…" she said, though the dark humor of it made her stomach feel sour. "Heh…do you always have to maintain that pirate lingo…?"

Foxy chuckled a bit as he began to walk beside her down the corridor. "Heh, nah…I just do it out of habit, and sometimes…I think it helps ease the others a bit…" he admitted; his voice still had the gravelly quality of a sea-dog without the perpetual phrases.

Laurel chuckled slightly, the sound echoing through the silence of the hallway. "I can see why…it is kind of comforting…reminds me a bit of your old cartoon persona too…"

Foxy perked up slightly at that. "Heh, the old cartoons? Most people yer age don' even know there were cartoons our characters're based on..."

"My mom used to come to the old diner and the pizzeria when she was little…I think she might have been your guys' biggest fangirl…" Laurel paused and snickered, though thinking about her mother at the moment made her heart hurt a bit. "When I got hired here, though, she dug out all her old VHS tapes of the cartoons that she'd been holding onto for years. I wound up binge watching them while I was studying for midterms at college, after she'd convinced me to apply here…they were pretty cute. A lot better than the crummy cartoons they make for kids these days…"

Foxy seemed a bit amused and appeared to be genuinely listening, though she noticed he seemed vigilante and on the alert, glimpsing left and right, and backwards in a thorough manner. "They were pretty corny…but they did have good morals and messages for the kiddos. Tha's what mattered most…" he replied. "…in all honesty, if it weren't for Springtrap, and William before him…this place might have been a lot like the place where all the characters were in the show. Someplace kids could come and have fun and be safe, and learn about the good things while they're growing up. Instead…it's become more about us trying our best to keep everyone safe while they're none the wiser…the only ones who ever came close to realizing what's happened here, over the years, were the night watchmen…and a lot of them didn't meet good fates…"

Laurel felt goosebumps crawl across her skin, but nodded; that seemed quite plausible with everything that had happened in the last few hours. Even those of them that likely did survive this place and lived to tell the tale were probably ostracized and deemed crazy if they'd ever attempted to tell other people what they'd seen here. And the company itself, for whatever reason, seemed almost painfully aware but more than willing to keep it under wraps if it meant turning a profit. It left Laurel at a loss of what to do.

She wanted to escape, of course, and go home and see her mother and her friends back at school again in one piece of course. But by this point, after hearing about everything that had led to this occurring, she now had a strong desire to help the others somehow escape from Springtrap as well. As Freddy had said, their antagonist now had the same kind of immortality they had and an insatiable desire to make them suffer. She'd even asked Freddy why they didn't just gang up on him and dissemble him so that he was no longer a threat, but Freddy had insinuated that Springtrap, with all his deviousness and intelligence, likely had some trump cards up his sleeve if he had found a way back here to them in the first place. She could see how that would make them nervous, though it just fueled her drive to want to help.

"I…have to admit…part of me doesn't want to leave, knowing that he's here, and he could so easily hurt any of you…" Laurel said, after a moment of tense silence. Foxy gave her a quiet look.

"Ye shouldn't say that, Laurel…we can take care of ourselves…but yer made of flesh and blood, still. Yer at the most risk here, with him about…"

"I know, I know…but I can't get what Freddy said out of my head…how he sees you all still as his playthings and wants to torment you somehow. Between seeing the old cartoons, and how much my mom cared about these places…and how all of you really are personality-wise…it's hard for me to think about escaping while knowing you would all still be stuck here."

Foxy was quiet for a few moments, looking like he was thinking, or pensive. "Maybe thar is some way for ye to help…but we'd have to ask Freddy once he's done talking to the Pu-" Foxy suddenly caught himself and went quiet, though Laurel shot him a questioning look.

"Is that why he was being so secretive? He's going off to talk to someone else I don't know about yet…?" she asked, and Foxy cursed slightly under his breath, but nodded.

"Aye…he went to discuss matters with the Puppet…he's one of the oldest beings here, and the one that gave us all life to begin with. If thar's anyone that might have a solution on how ta keep ye safe in the interim, it's him…" Foxy replied.

"The Puppet…?" Laurel echoed him; he remembered that Freddy had said the Puppet had once been inhabited by William's first victim, the little boy that had been murdered just outside the diner while waiting for his parents to pick him up, if she was remembering it right.

"Aye…tha's part a' why he wanted ye to stay scarce for a bit…the Puppet is wise, but isn't very trustworthy of outsiders, 'specially adults…he an' the others are hoping to soften him up a bit and make him understand. He'll likely still want ta meet you though…especially if he does think a' some way ta help ye survive here."

Laurel nodded; she could understand that, especially after having learned so much about the awful history of this place. "I'd be willing to meet him, especially if he thinks he could figure out some way to keep me safe from Springtrap…"

Foxy nodded. "Don't worry yerself too much…we've all got yer back. We know yer jus' an innocent party in all this…and really, all of us are tired a' all the violence. It's been decades now of murder and unrest…we just want peace…" His voice trailed off slightly, like he was lost in thought once again, but he shook his head a bit and mustered a small, toothy smile. "Le's not dwell on that fer now, though…why doncha tell me more about yerself?"

"Heh, I think I'd bore you with that…compared to all of this my life's about as boring as dirt…"

"Trust me, lass…after everything we've all been through…sometimes the simple stuff is what brings us some contentment…" Foxy assured her.

Laurel consented, and told him some details about her life. How she'd grown up here, though she'd been born several years after the pizzeria had closed. How she had had a relatively normal childhood, leaving out some darker bits here and there...at least until her parents had divorced when she was nine, and how she'd lived here with her mother since that time and tried to move on after the fact. Lastly, how she had gone away to school down in the southern part of the state, studying to go into theatre, though she wasn't sure what specifically to major in yet.

"I've really enjoyed singing and acting and...just plain goofing around since I was little, so my mom always encouraged me to go to college for it…it just sucks it's not a very good job to have these days…" Laurel sighed a bit, exasperated. It felt weird to think about something so trivial compared to what was going on right now, but she had to at least envision she might have a shot at getting out of here, if nothing else but to maintain what was left of her sanity. She half-expected to hear Foxy chuckle at her assertations, but his gaze was soft and understanding.

"I think that's a nice dream to have," he said, after a moment, and Laurel paused slightly.

"Y-you do…? My friends used to tease me that it was stupid…half of them went into engineering or computer studies…you know, things that actually pay money these days…" she said, with a bit of a sad smile.

"Yar, I do…" he replied, suddenly tapping the base of her chin a bit affectionately with his hook. It startled her for half a second, because of the cold glint of the metal, but she could see he did it to be encouraging and smiled a bit to him. "I think it's a fine thing to dream for…if ye don't strive fer what ye enjoy, thar's no point to it, aye?"

Laurel chuckled a bit and lowered her gaze slightly. "That's sweet of you to say…well, if I can get out of this place in one piece…suddenly going through college to achieve that won't seem nearly as bad…"

"Don' talk like that, Laurel…we'll getcha out of here, somehow…even if it takes some time," Foxy replied, using his hook to draw her gaze back up to him. His smile was at least comforting, and warm; suddenly she actually felt kind of angry at her co-workers for joking about him being creepy or frightening.

"Thanks…I think if we just find a way to stay a few steps ahead of him, I'll manage to get out…and if this damned snow will ever stop falling…" she said, though she noticed he cringed very faintly when she swore. "Oh, uh…sorry…yeah, this is a kids' establishment isn't it? You guys probably don't like cussing…"

Foxy snickered a bit into his paw. "I don't mind it much, personally…but, it does feel out of place…Freddy would give ya an earful like he does me all tha time bout it…" he laughed a bit, and Laurel joined in for a moment. It felt nice to laugh in the midst of how anxious she'd felt the last couple hours.

"Heh…thanks, for this, Foxy…" Laurel finally said after a moment. His expression softened slightly and his ears perked up a bit.

"Hmm? Fer what lass?"

"For making me feel better…I've felt, well…pretty much terrified ever since Springtrap had me cornered…and with Freddy telling me everything that's happened and what Springtrap might be planning…I've just felt sick with fear. But…this is the first time I've felt relaxed, thanks to you…"

Foxy bashfully rubbed the back of his head with his hook. "Heh, it's no trouble lass…jus' want to do what I can to make ya feel better…but I do mean what ah say…we'll do everything we can ta keep ya safe while yer here…"

Laurel was about to reply, but they were interrupted when she saw someone approach from behind Foxy. Toy Bonnie's innocent looking features gazed at them through the near-darkness of the corridor as he stood there, looking a bit awkward about interrupting them.

"H-hey Foxy…I was just coming to find the two of you…the P-Puppet wants to see her…" Toy Bonnie said; he had a soft, somewhat nervous chatter about him that honestly Laurel found to be kind of adorable. He almost sounded like her nerdy teenage friends from high school that she still missed whole-heartedly. Foxy nodded and turned back to Laurel.

"Ye go with 'im, lass…I need to patrol around once more, then I'll rejoin ye and the others," he said. "We can' be too careful with tha' damned bilge rat runnin' bout…"

"F-Foxy, watch your language…remember what Freddy told us…" Toy Bonnie stammered a bit.

Foxy rolled his optics slightly and shook his head a bit as he stomped off to do his rounds, which made Laurel chuckle a bit airily, though she quickly hurried to Toy Bonnie's side, not really liking being even distanced from them now. Toy Bonnie gave her a cheerful, it not a bit apprehensive, smile as they walked down the hallway.

"H-heh…don't worry about talking to Mr. Puppet…he's actually pretty nice, y-you know…once he trusts you…" Toy Bonnie said, trying to muster an effort to be reassuring.

"I think it'll be all right…I have nothing to hide, after all…" Laurel agreed.

"Th-that's good…because he's really…good at knowing when you're lying…" Toy Bonnie said, almost a little ominously. That didn't exactly ease the knot in her stomach much, but she marched forward nonetheless.

Toy Bonnie led her back to the main banquet hall, and over to the corner where the Prize Counter was stationed. There, she could see the other animatronics gathered minus Foxy of course, who was still patrolling the building. Laurel felt a bit uneasy, seeing how serious they were, but there was nothing else to be done at this point. She approached them alongside Toy Bonnie, who shuffled a bit nervously to Toy Chica's side once they arrived.

Freddy gestured for her to come closer to him, and she realized he was standing beside what appeared to be the large prize box that the employees used for children to select a random prize on their birthday. It was a custom that had helped make the place popular, even though during the day it was stuffed with prizes that the kids could buy for like…five tickets from the counter. As she approached, however, she realized that the box was empty, and was missing its lid. Inside it, in the darkness, she could see a lithe, almost entirely black figure sitting there, its face lowered, though when she got lower it looked up at her.

Now she remembered where she'd seen the Puppet, both during the day and before she'd come here. He was actually a side character from the cartoon, a sock-puppet character that Freddy would consult for advice when he was stuck on some childhood issue or conundrum. It was supposed to be funny for the kids, since it was really him talking to himself there, but here…he was like their mentor, and their protector. The significance of that almost stunned her a bit. In the context of the restaurant, he was usually hung by the employees over the play-place like some sort of guardian watching over them; now, that seemed to make even more sense to her, though it was ironic considering her co-workers had no idea what really went on here. She wondered what he was doing in the box at the moment, though he suddenly stood; his painted face was contorted slightly into a faint frown as he looked down at her, almost disinterested. It made her feel nervous, though she did her best to remain composed. Fortunately, Freddy stayed at her side; he almost felt like her representative, someone she had in her corner to come to her defense. This was all feeling only more surreal as it happened.

"So…you are the one they've been telling me about…?" The Puppet's voice was different from the animatronics; it didn't have the same layered, half-mechanized quality that theirs had. Instead, it sounded nasally and high-pitched, adult with a childlike innocent to it, but still quite menacing. Its blackened holes where its eyes were seemed to be staring down at her.

"Y-yes…I am," she replied, trying not to sound utterly sheepishly or afraid. This was feeling reminiscent, however, of when she was little and would hold mock trials with her stuffed animals, replicating the crime shows she often saw her mother watching.

The Puppet wordlessly stepped out of the box, apparently to take a closer look at her. She was surprised that it was far taller than she'd at first thought, though it'd been hard to see up close to this point; it actually stood a couple inches taller than her. It narrowed its eyes, and gently stroked the base of its mask, taking a close look at her. For some reason having it so close gave her the heebie-jeebies, though not in the terrifying way that Springtrap had. This felt more like looking at someone who had the power – but probably not the motive – to bring her great harm.

"Hmm…" the Puppet sighed a bit contemplatively, circling you a little; it was more inquisitive than predatory at least, though Laurel was still visibly tense. "You seem harmless enough…even in spite of being an adult…"

"I-I am, I promise…I-"

"I'm not finished speaking…" the Puppet said, almost in a reprimand, which made Laurel silence and keep her gaze lowered. She had to do this on his terms, it seemed, even though his attitude was making her a bit flustered. She wanted to tell him she was nothing more than a nerdy white girl who had only taken this cursed job to get her mother off her back, but she bit her lip for the time being.

The Puppet eventually paused behind her, looming over her slightly. It made her shiver a bit, not knowing what he was doing; turning slightly, she could see a faint grin back on his eerie features once more.

"I'm sure one of them have implied it to you…but I am very much able to see into your soul, Laurel…if you are truly not here with any malicious content…you will allow me to see into your spirit for myself. Will you agree? Bear in mind…if I do so, you will be able to look back into mine…and it may not be pleasant for you. I still have maintained quite a few of the memories that the soul within he possessed, after all. It is your choice, however; if you do not agree, though, then I will not have enough trust in you to aid you while you are here. Do you understand…?" His tone was almost playful, or whimsical, like he was expecting her to refuse; she could see why, with how nervous she felt right now.

Freddy made a cursory attempt to intercede on her part. "Please, Puppet…she's trustworthy. All of us have seen her the last few days, during her orientation and first couple days of work…she's an innocent party in all this, and not like the old security guards…"

The Puppet, however, seemed unamused at his words, and he quieted almost immediately. "I know all of you trust her…but all of you are naïve, influenced by the innocence of the children that once inhabited your forms. I, however, have a much better perception of how people are when I can see into their psyches for myself. So…what is your answer, Laurel? It is still your choice to accept, or refuse."

Somehow, however, she managed to steel herself enough to gulp down her fear and nod. "I-I'll do it…"

She half-expected the Puppet to be surprised at her resolve, but he said nothing and his expression was flat. He simply nodded, and gestured with his spiny, black fingers to the large box he had been sitting in when she'd arrived. "Very well…please, have a seat inside then…"

Laurel looked a bit confused, but really all she could do was concede. Freddy and his Toy counterpart helped her step over the ledge and into it, and she took a seat with her knees pressed against her chest, her back against the box as the Puppet stepped inside and sat down facing her, still with that monotonous expression on his mask.

Wordlessly, the animatronics suddenly covered the box in its heavily fiberglass lid once more, and they were sealed into a thick darkness within there. Laurel was stunned, and gasped faintly, when she felt the soft cloth of his fingers suddenly rest against either side of her face; in the darkness, its eyes suddenly 'opened' in the form of two white orbs of light that shone towards her. She felt mesmerized by them almost instantly, transfixed on them.

"Do not fear me…I have no intentions to harm you in spite of any suspicions I have…" his tone was slightly more gentle, though still firm. "Look into my eyes, into their light…they are my doorway, the opening into my spirit…and will open yours as well to me…"

Laurel felt nervous for a moment, but then it was almost as if the apprehension she'd been bottling up inside of her suddenly dissipated from her as she felt a distinct, disembodied warmth well up in her chest and make its way through her throat, and into her face; she could see, now, that her own eyes were beginning to gleam in much the same way with how his face illuminated.

"Now…I will enter your mind and your soul, and see whom you really are…while I am there, you may see odd images or memories, from the remnants of my own spirit…you will have to endure it while this occurs…" he warned once more; just after he finished saying this, however, the light in his eyes suddenly seemed to grow exponentially and engulf them both.

When it settled, she found herself standing in her living room; almost immediately, however, she could see what seemed to be memories from her childhood, and her life leading up to this point in time, flickering before them. The Puppet was standing beside her, with a faint smile still present, his hand cupping the base of his mask once more as he looked at the scenes that played out. It was almost like time was warping; some memories would slow and allow for him to absorb it, then it would speed back up to ungodly paces, with days, months, even years going by in the blink of an eye.

"Ah…you had a pretty nice childhood, didn't you?" he asked, seeing instances of her playing contently in her living room, dressing in costumes and creating artwork on the walls to her parents' disdain. Laurel couldn't help but smile; seeing these memories again, in such clarity, was comforting to her. She did notice now and then, the world seemed to warp even more so, like she was sometimes in another home, seeing another childhood, that of a little boy. Brief flashes of his poor, but happy, upbringing appeared here and there like her memories were merging into his own sporatically.

 _"_ _Did you finish making your friend his gift for his birthday? Aww, that's an adorable frog mask…I'm sure he'll love it dear! How about we wrap it in the newspaper's comics? I wish I'd had the money to get some wrapping paper for you…"_

Laurel shook her head slightly and realized that they'd stopped flowing through time quite so harshly. The Puppet, however, was now frowning a bit, though still holding that same relaxed pose. "Hmm…this is the point of the greatest sadness and pain in your life…" he informed her, and almost immediately, she knew what it was.

She could see her own small, childish form crumpled and curled up behind the sofa, crying silently as her unseen parents were shouting in the kitchen. Her father's drunk slurring and her mother's pleading, and her cries of protest and anguish when she was struck, echoed through the room. Then, her father's form stalked from the kitchen towards her; in her memory, he looked almost monstrous, like some blackened, charred being that was a gouge on her once happy memories. Laurel felt the same deep, almost primal fear welling up inside of her as she heard her smaller self plead with him to leave her alone, and she winced harshly, feeling the pain against the side of her face as he struck her. The soft thud of her form hitting the carpet was almost inaudible over her mother's screams for him to stop. It all started to blur a bit, however, and she shut her eyes, feeling terrified and saddened.

 _"_ _Are you all set to go? I'm sorry I don't have the car to drive you to the party sweetheart…your father needed to take it to go to his interview today…" a soft, female voice called out._

 _"_ _It's okay mom, I'll be fine…it's only a few blocks away!" she heard a child's voice call back. Everything around her was dark, but it felt like she was right there with them, whomever they were._

 _"_ _All right…just make sure that you're waiting outside for me at seven o'clock, okay? I'll come by and walk you home after I walk to the supermarket and get us some groceries tonight…"_

 _"_ _Okay mom! Bye!" A door slammed sharply, echoing into the darkness._

Laurel opened her eyes, and found herself sitting down on the edge of a stage, looking off into an empty auditorium. The Puppet was sitting beside her, smiling faintly once again, reclining back on his long, spindly arms. She noticed, however, his smile was less playful and mischievous, and a bit more saddened.

"That wasn't a very fun memory…your father was abusive sometimes?"

Laurel sighed, closing her eyes a bit. "Y-yeah…it wasn't…constant, at least. There are a lot of kids that had it worse than me. It was just…hard, because when I was little, he was so happy and fun. But…when I was six, he lost his job at the factory, and he had a lot of trouble finding another one…and he started drinking when he was depressed. He'd tell mom and I that he was going out to interviews, and was really going to the bar to spend his unemployment checks. It…it really sucked, for lack of a better word…" She was surprised at how emotional she sounded, considered it had happened almost a decade ago, now. It felt so raw again, though, having seen it play out in front of her again.

"You saw a small shred of an old memory of mine, or rather, the child's…his own parents were unemployed, but they still tried very hard to make things work…sometimes, though, life just isn't very fair, is it?" Laurel shook her head, and sighed a bit. "You seemed happier when you were in high school though, before leaving for college a few months ago…especially up here…" He waved his lengthy arm across the darkened chamber of the stage. Laurel followed it, and saw shadows and flickers of images of herself and her old friends starting to surface there. She mustered a small smile.

"Yeah…my friends and I were all part of the drama club. Even on days when there weren't any meetings we'd come here, and just goof around like idiots…it was really fun. Took my mind off of the stress…" She paused, seeing a faded scene where she and her old friend, Jonathon, had been acting out a scene from "Hamlet" together for the school's yearly performance. Jonathon had been cast as Hamlet himself, and Laurel had been cast as his doomed love interest Ophelia. At first, she hadn't wanted to touch the role with a ten-foot pole, knowing Ophelia's fate from the text. But, as time had worn on, she had warmed up to it and enjoyed it, giving every bit of dramatic sadness and depth to the character that she could. The rehearsal she was seeing right now, however, was close to opening night, and she was giving it all she could to impress her friends and her drama teacher, who was waiting and watching in the front row. It was Ophelia's final performance in the play before her eventual off-stage suicide. By this point, Laurel had managed to memorize her lines and could recite them by heart.

 _"Indeed, la, without an oath, I'll make an end on't!  
[Sings] By Gis and by Saint Charity,..._

 _I hope all will be well. We must be patient; but I cannot  
choose but weep to think they would lay him i' th' cold ground..."_

She began to cry faint, staged tears that ran warmly down her cheeks as she recited Ophelia's last, manic verses that altered between mourning and singing, and as she watched this, suddenly everything went black for a moment, as though all the stage lights had been shut off simultaneously for dramatic effect.

 _"_ _Are you lost little one…?"_

 _She opened her eyes, confused to find herself displaced from the happy memory, and finding herself sitting on the side of the road, a stuffed toy clutched out of sight at her side. The warmth of tears streaking down her cheeks was there as she looked up, sniffling a bit. There was a man there, standing beside an older station wagon that was idling at the curb. He was wearing a purple security uniform and had an eerie smile on his face…like he was mustering to try and seem genuine and caring._

 _Laurel immediately felt utterly creeped out by him, but her voice spoke for her, and it was not her own; instead, it was a little boy's prepubescent voice that squeaked from her mouth sadly._

 _"_ _N-no…I…I'm just waiting for my mom to come pick me up…"_

 _"_ _I see…why are you crying? I saw you come out of the party going on in there…I would have thought you'd be smiling from ear to ear with all the fun you had," the security officer replied. Laurel heard an anguished sniffle come from "her" nose._

 _"_ _I-I was…b-but…but they…they laughed at my present…I made my gift f-for my friend…but they s-said it was stupid…and that I only did it because we were too poor to buy him something…" There was a pit in her stomach, like what they had said was true, but it had been turned into a cruel, awful joke against this poor boy._

 _"_ _Ah, that's a shame…kids can be so cruel, can't they? That's why I've always hated them…" the man's tone suddenly seemed to deepen, and distort, reaching almost demonic levels as the world seemed to almost glitch, like something terrible was about to happen. The terror that she felt in her gut seemed to be matched by what the child she was seeing through, right now, was feeling. She looked up in time to suddenly see the glint of what looked like a long, sharp kitchen knife in the air. The man's leery smile had morphed into something evil and horrifying, like it stretched beyond the confines of his face and merged into the darkness of the dark, rainy skies above them. "That's why I've been waiting a long time to do this…"_

 _Laurel suddenly felt the horrific pain of the blade suddenly drawn across her throat, cutting her from ear to ear in one swift, awful motion. The body went limp against the sidewalk, the pain subsiding quickly as the life bled onto the unforgiving concrete. The man grinned down at his handiwork only a few seconds before he callously turned, entering the vehicle and departing wordlessly._

 _She could hear, and feel, him try so hard to call for her. The last, waning moment of his light, he was looking back into the diner, seeing the other children laughing and running around, playing with prizes and balloons and all the other merriment objects through the brightly lit windows. But no words could come, only the gurgling of blood and the death rattle that surfaced from his lungs as his last, miserable breaths slipped from him, his vision blurring and turning red…before everything blackened._

Laurel suddenly jolted from that memory and felt herself all but bang her head against the inside of the fiberglass prize box, bathed in darkness once more; they were back in the restaurant, and it was silent again, though she realized her cheeks were still flushed and wet with tears. Her breathing was also labored, swearing that she could still feel the sting of the blade's vicious cut across her throat. In the darkness, she could faintly see the Puppet's white mask and painted features. Its expression was once again blank, watching her.

"You saw his death…didn't you…?" he asked. "It was the apex in which I was given life…so, it is the hardest to repress, especially when I am using what power I still have-" he explained, though he suddenly grunted slightly when Laurel all but lunged forward…and embraced him tightly. He seemed stunned into silence for a moment, his expression still blank.

A shudder ran down Laurel's body and her forehead was pressed into the musty, faintly warm fabric of his form. "I'm so…so sorry…that both he, and you, went through that…" she managed to say after a moment, a few fresh tears streaking down her face. "It…it was so terrible…I…I never imagined how bad it was…" she choked a bit, trying to calm herself. "And here…I thought it was so bad that dad came home drunk once in a while…that…that was so awful…that poor, poor little boy…and you're still carrying the pain he went through…"

The Puppet was silent for what felt like an eternity, unmoving, and Laurel was hoping she hadn't made a fool out of herself with this outburst of emotion, though it was hard not to after having seen that. She was finally given an answer, however, when she felt its thin arms wrap around her, gently, and the cool surface of the mask perched down against the top of her head, as though he were looking off beyond her. His presence suddenly felt contenting and warm to her, unlike the cool, apprehensive distance that had existed before they had started this.

"You have gained my trust, Laurel…" he finally said, still embracing her quietly. "I can see you are a genuine person, and have no ill intent…and you are, indeed, an innocent in this…as the children were, throughout the years. You also have a caring soul, even though you still have some growing up of your own to do. And, you have promise still left in your life, if you can escape from here...I cannot make any promises, however, that that is assured. I am not omnipotent, in spite of what I've done over the years…and Springtrap has only grown in malice. But I do have an idea how we can make certain that he does not end your life here, the way he has those who led to our creation…it is very drastic, however, but…it is really the only solution that I can foresee to make sure he doesn't decide you are expendable, and ends your life…"

Laurel drew back slightly, feeling his hands slide to her shoulders; she could see his expression was serious since his gaze was only a few inches from hers.

"Wh-what idea is that…?" she asked, looking up at him with a mixture of curiously and anxiety.

His expression was still measured, and placid, unchanging before he replied.

"You must become...like us…"

[ **Author's Note** : Hey thanks everyone who's followed and fave'd this story so far! I'm having a lot of fun writing it and applying some ideas to the "mythology" of these games! It's been a lot of fun writing this so far while taking breaks from my work. I'll be starting the next chapter very soon, so please review this story if you're liking it thus far!]


	4. Out with the Old

"Tha Puppet's off his rocker…" Foxy murmured, which almost immediately earned him a shushing from Toy Freddy.

"You know not to talk like that…he's the one that's kept us safe all these years, after all…"

"Safe'r not, he's still lost his mind…how exactly is rippin' Laurel's soul out of her body and shoving it inta an animatronic gonna help her exactly?!" Foxy replied, looking incredulous. "Isn't tha' kinda tha' opposite a' what we wanted ta accomplish?"

"Calm down, Foxy…" Vixen said, holding up her hands in a "just relax" gesture. "I know it does sound kind of counter-intuitive, but hear us out…you weren't here when they were discussing things. The Puppet even admitted it's pretty drastic to go about doing it this way, but the best option we have is to put her soul into something that's, for all intents and purposes, unable to be killed by Springtrap, and keep her body preserved down in the old meat freezers in the basement from when this place was a manufacturing plant. That way, her body isn't damaged by Springtrap, or killed by him; if her animatronic form breaks, or something along those lines, we can at least fix her…if she's hurt as a human, though…we're at a loss, and if her soul is then put into an animatronic, she's trapped here forever…"

Foxy still didn't much enjoy the idea, as much as it did make sense. Springtrap could hurt her body, but not her spirit, so it made sense to put it somewhere that it could be preserved. But still…something about it didn't feel right to him. They still didn't have a clear idea of what their old enemy was plotting to do.

"An' wha happens if that bilge rat finds'er body down thar?" he pointed out. "He's got access to tha lower levels same as we do…"

"The Puppet seems confident that he can find someplace to store it where he can't locate it…I mean, they go on almost for miles down there. And if we can find a way to keep tabs on what Springtrap is up to…he wouldn't be able to try anything," Toy Chica pointed out.

"It does come with some pretty hefty consequences, though…" Toy Freddy pointed out. "I wouldn't blame her if she chose not to…"

"It's not as though she would lose her memories forever, though…most of them would just be sealed with her body, to keep them from being lost while she's removed from it…it might be her best chance at getting out of here as unaffected as possible…" Mangle countered his statement.

"I still don't like it…" Foxy murmured, though he knew it wasn't his choice to make. Laurel had already been explained what would happen, and she had agreed that it was likely her best shot at keeping alive throughout this debacle.

"You can be grumpy about it all you want, Foxy…but she's likely going to need our help adjusting to living here for the time being while the place is unreachable…" Mangle retorted softly, though she sighed. "We do need your help, though…we need an animatronic body to place her soul into for the time being…"

Foxy cocked an eyebrow at her. "Why're ye askin' me fer one?"

"Most of the ones that are down in storage aren't in good shape, but Freddy said there were a couple that were once a part of Pirate Cove that are relatively unused…do you know where they might have stashed them?" Toy Chica asked.

Foxy knew what ones they were referring to, and sighed. "Aye…fine. I'll show them where they are…best if she feels this is tha best course 'a action tha' she at least gets a body tha's workin' properly…"

Laurel honestly wasn't 100% on board with this, but the more she had took some time to think it over, the fewer options she felt were viable for her. As the Puppet had explained, being comprised of flesh and blood in this place, with Springtrap able to evade them, was immensely dangerous. It would take only a very brief time while the others may be distracted, and he could end her. Not to mention, in the near-freezing temperatures that the restaurant was reaching because of the power outage, it wouldn't be very good for her health to remain there, and could possibly also be life-threatening to her, even if she stayed bundled up. Having her sealed in an animatronic would give her the sort of durability and immortality that she needed for now, to buy time.

Down in the catacombs beneath the banquet hall and play court, there were seemingly endless tunnel-like corridors that were left over from this location's past use as a meat-packing facility. The freezers that had once housed large carcasses of cut meat in transit still worked, and were used by the facility to store frozen food stuffs, soda, ice, and anything else that was needed for the parties upstairs. Most of the freezers were relatively empty, however, and one of them had a long, empty canister that was leftover from its past days. That would serve as a temporary holder for her body, though when she was shown it, it felt more like a coffin, or a tomb. She had to muster a lot of gumption to get that thought out of her head.

Fortunately, the Puppet was able to make the transition upstairs where it was warmer. The animatronic that they'd been able to scrounge up for her was a discontinued character from Pirate Cove that was still in pristine shape.

"Aye, these characters were supposed ta be side characters in my performances…" Foxy explained; Laurel looked down at the animatronic quietly. It was of a female rat character; she was smaller since she was one of the Toy animatronics, with faintly tan fur. She was wearing a pink cover similar to Toy Chica's, along with a pink bandanna around her tuft of brown hair, and a white bandanna around her neck that had cute little pictures of Swiss cheese on it. She also had a play slingshot strapped to her left thigh, and a long mechanical tail.

"This one was called Ruby the Bilge Rat…she and her twin Rudy were sort of side-kicks years back to Foxy. But the company was sued by some big-name corporation that claimed copyright issues with having rat or mice characters, so the two characters were no longer used and put into storage…we think they were eventually going to salvage their parts, but they were just left to gather dust…" Mangle explained further. "The Puppet is also going to activate Rudy, just…for another set of eyes, what with Springtrap running around…"

Laurel mustered a small smile. "Heh…well, at least they're pretty cute…" she replied. "Once…once I'm inside of the animatronic body, I…I won't really remember much of who I am, will I…?"

"No, you will not…" the Puppet replied. "You'll have faint memories of your life…similar to how those of us were once inhabited by spirits had glimpses into their lives. But, for all intents and purposes, you will have to live in this body as Ruby…her old memories of being an animatronic here will come to the forefront, and your personality will be a blend of your own, and hers…"

Laurel nodded. "I'll…I'll do my best to maintain what I can of who I am now…"

The Puppet nodded. "Whenever you're ready, lie down beside her shell, and we'll begin the process…"

Laurel took a deep breath, trying to resolve herself as best as she could, before she laid down beside the animatronic; ironically, it was about the same height as she was now. At least she wouldn't have to get used to being in a body that was substantially different from the one she was in now, at least size-wise. The Puppet came to her side, and knelt down on his spiny legs, then carefully rested one of his hands onto Laurel's forehead, and the other onto the forehead of the animatronic.

Almost immediately Laurel felt weary, like that sort of exhaustion you feel just after you've run a marathon or busted out a 14-hour shift at work. Her eyelids felt weighted, and shut almost immediately, and it felt like she was falling into a deep, endless cycle of sleep. It felt like she was sleeping for a long time, and also awake again in an instant.

Her first experience as an animatronic was shocking to say the least, both literally and figuratively. It hadn't been used in some time, and the mechanisms and gears inside of it shuddered and seized up for a moment as her spirit settled inside of it. None of the others moved or said anything; it wasn't something foreign to them, as this was the same method that the Puppet had used before to seal the spirits within all of them initially; it had become almost a sacred sort of process.

Eventually Laurel's optics managed to open, though actually getting the mechanism to release and allow her to see was a challenge in itself; her joints all felt tight and rigid, and she struggled a bit to get the body to move with the way that her "mind" was telling it too. She let out what almost sounded like a gravelly sigh as the internal mechanisms circulated the copious amounts of dust out of her. Oddly, awakening in this state seemed to trigger a sense of fight or flight and she felt the need to immediately get up, though when she tried to her animatronic form locked up and she fell back to the ground. The Puppet immediately rested a hand on her forehead, which somehow calmed her a bit.

"Give it a moment…it takes some time for your spirit to acclimate to being in a form that isn't made of flesh…" he said; his voice was utterly soothing to her now. She did as he instructed, however, and laid still, taking a moment to allow her spirit to settle. It almost felt like her ethereal persona was trying to fill in the empty void of the animatronic itself. Being inside of it almost felt…like a strange cross between being inside of a trippy dream and also being locked inside of a tight, claustrophobic cage. Her fingers somewhat spastically still clenched and unclenched; each time they did she could hear the telltale sound of the joints letting out a mechanical squeal.

"That's good…flex your fingers and toes first. Work from your extremities inwards," the Puppet said; she did as he said, and moved her fingers and the three large toes on her paws first, then worked her way up to moving her arms and legs a bit, and then her torso and neck; this helped to loosen the joints a bit again, and she found it easier this time to push herself up first onto her elbows, then her hands into a sitting position. It felt weird moving her long tail around, since it wasn't something she'd had before, but she got the hang of it; it wagged slightly as she managed to push herself up a bit.

Getting onto her feet probably would have still been somewhat impossible, but Foxy and Mangle each offered her a hand to hoist her to her feet, which she accepted gladly. She still teetered and almost fell when she managed to stand, her knee joints buckling a bit miserably, but Foxy immediately caught her from falling forward onto her face. He smiled a bit to her, trying to reassure her.

"How ya feelin' lass?" he asked.

"K…kinda weird…" she replied, though she winced a bit hearing her voice; it was still coarse from the shell being in storage for so long. "I-I'm…sure you'll all tell me this…takes some getting used to…"

"It does, yes…" Freddy nodded. "You'll get used to it quicker than you think though. Our bodies might be anthropomorphic and mechanical, but they still function in many the same ways a physical body would, just…minus the flesh and bone. Your movements, joints, and sensory functions are all the same though."

She looked around a bit in response; her optics flickered a bit for a moment, but cleared after a bit of use. She found her vision was relatively the same, though she found it to be tunneled a bit. Her auditory sensors, however, were incredibly strong, probably since her ears were now so big. She could hear the shutters outside rustling ever so slightly in the wind. She was already finding that many of her memories felt faint and distant, however, and there were some things that she couldn't remember at all. She did recognize her body on the floor, however, though seeing it sent a strange chill through her somehow.

"Well, now that she's gotten installed into her new form, let's activate her brother for the time being…" the Puppet replied; he reached underneath the small animatronic's neck to reactivate its switch. Laurel heard Foxy groan a bit.

"Rudy was always…over eager to be a help, to the point of being pretty insufferable…" Toy Chica chuckled slightly.

"Tha's puttin' it mildly…" Foxy grumbled a bit. "He ne'er had a human soul inside a' him…which means he runs only on 'is programming…he's good natured, but…naïve, and…well, dim-witted sometimes." Laurel, however, watched in silent fascination as the Puppet flipped the switch, and almost immediately the small rodent animatronic sputtered a bit and then came back to life. Whereas her form, Ruby, was tan with green eyes and pink garments, Rudy was gray with blue eyes, a blue bandana and blue Bermuda shorts with Swiss cheese on them. It seemed like the second he was reactivated, he suddenly managed to spring himself up into a sitting position and then stand.

"Ah, it feels good wakin' up after such a long nap!" Rudy proclaimed happily as he stretched a bit, though the second that his gaze was turned, Laurel suddenly felt the her "twin" impact Foxy in what she could only describe as a tackle-hug. Rudy grinned widely as Foxy glared back up at him, however, even as the young animatronic's tail weaved side to side playfully. "Ahoy cap'n! How be tha' seas farin' these days?"

Foxy let out a restrained cross between a sneer and a groan as he plucked Rudy up and off of himself with relative ease. "Ah don' know how many times ah kin tell ye, Rudy…tha's based on tha' cartoon…here, we jus' make kids happy, remember?" he said, his voice growling a bit, though it didn't seem to shake Rudy. The other animatronics seemed to find this interaction pretty hilarious, however most of them had the fortitude not to burst out laughing since Foxy could be such a hothead. Even the Puppet had an amused half-smirk.

"Aye, ah remember, is jus' my dream ta actually have real adventures cap'n…"

"Kid, call me Foxy, not "cap'n"…"

"Aye aye Cap'n Foxy!" Rudy replied enthusiastically. Foxy sighed and ran his claw down his face as some of the others giggled and snickered a bit. Rudy's attention, however, eventually wandered to Laurel, and he suddenly did about the same thing to her and she found herself half-pinned to the ground. Rudy's expectant gaze was aimed down at her, his grin still plastered from ear to ear.

"Ahoy sis, how're ye farin'? Ye were locked up fer ages with me in thar," he said; she noticed that while he did have the thick pirate lingo, his voice was prepubescent and very childlike, whereas hers sounded older and more like her actual voice.

"Uh…I'm…f-fine Rudy…" she replied, giving him a sheepish grin in return, though his expression suddenly changed a bit with confusion.

"Sis…? Why's yer voice sound like a landlubber's now?" he asked, squinting as though he were suspicious she was who she said she was. He was suddenly lifted off of her, however, by Foxy, who tugged him up by the bandana around his neck using his hook.

"Rudy, Ruby's jus'…a lil different now is all, but it's still her," Foxy said, knowing the real explanation would probably go right over the young one's head.

"If ya say so Cap'n Foxy…" Rudy replied as he was set back onto his feet. Laurel managed to get to her feet as Rudy suddenly seemed to have a jarring thought and took off. "Ah wanna go'n see wha' they've done ta Pirate Cove since we've been gone!"

"It's called Kid Cove now Rudy!" Foxy called after him with a sigh. "He's got way too much darn energy…"

"Think that he'll be confused if you call me Laurel…?" Laurel said, though even now the name was starting to feel almost distant to her.

The Puppet frowned a bit. "That won't be a problem…because you won't be called that in this form, Laurel…you're Ruby now. I know it seems strange, but when you take on one of these forms, you identify with it for the time being…we'll put your body somewhere safe downstairs for the time being and keep it preserved, so that no harm can come to you. But…for now, you're part of the world that we exist in…" he rested his hands on her shoulders. "Do you understand…?"

She paused for a moment; it felt like the gravity of all this was finally starting to weigh in on her, but there was no turning back now. She'd made her decision and now she'd have to stick with it for now. She only hoped…that she'd remember enough about who she was before all this happened.

"Yes…I understand," Ruby replied.

* * *

 _Adorable…really, it is. They're all still so naïve, so unrefined and yet, so dutiful. It's almost admiration, really…for how drastic their measures have been, there is still something so childish to them that has survived all of these years…_

He paused for a moment, smirking a faint bit as his claw passed over the old, outdated tablet that was wired into the security system. It wasn't working the best, the images sometimes fading out into heavy static and sometimes cutting out completely. All these years and technological advances later and still they hadn't invested into an actual security system. Guess humans were still as greedy and cheap as ever.

He watched with a lazy gaze as the cameras flickered over the images of the animatronics as they began to disperse, wandering the place in the rare daylight. Some of them paused at times to glimpse out the windows, rarely able to see the sunlight or even the falling snow outside because of their usual location deep in the restaurant. His gaze, however, intensified a bit as the screen flickered over Foxy walking alongside one of the "new" animatronics. He remembered those ones…a pair of mice that had entertained the youngest brats years ago. They'd gotten shelved after copyright infringement had been claimed against the company that owned the franchise, however, and he hadn't seen them since that time. His apathetic gaze morphed into a twisted smirk as the realization came to him.

 _Ah, they're cleverer than I realized…though an animatronic body can only keep someone so safe…_ His fingers flexed a bit, cracking the screen slightly as a flicker of anger caused his grip to tighten slightly, though he calmed it quickly. He didn't want to lose his window into seeing around the play-place, after all, and he only had the one tablet for the time being.

 _So…"Laurel" is it?…you're now one of us, hm? This just makes things all the more interesting…now, you're just as naïve as the rest of them and even more in the dark of the dangers that are here…perfect._ His eyes flicked up slightly from the key card that Laurel had lost when she'd first been attacked in the storage closet; it didn't unlock all doors in the facility…but it did access most of them. _I might not have to drag you down there kicking and screaming then…now, there's a chance I can simply convince you to come with me of your own recognizance…and I know just how to do so…_

He paused and turned, leaving the now abandoned security office, tucking the key card and tablet into Laurel's forgotten winter coat, which he tucked under his arm. He heard some voices approaching and swiftly dodged into one of the VIP rooms, concealing himself there for a moment until they passed. He recognized Chica's and Mangle's voices and sneered silently as they passed, though they had no inkling he was there. Once they were out of earshot, he slipped out of the room and quickly found his way back to the unlocked door into the basement.

He'd already watched Freddy carry Laurel's body down into there, alongside of that damned Puppet; the latter had caused him so much trouble over the years, he detested him most of all. He looked forward to putting him into the incinerator soon enough. The others, however, would wish they could have such a swift and relatively painless fate.

He didn't know where her real body was, but that was of little consequence for the time being. He could find it later; right now, what he needed was someone who could act as his emissary of sorts without alerting them to what was happening. He slowly approached a locked door at the end of the corridor, past all of the coolers and freezers which were partially operating. He pulled out Laurel's key card and slid it through the reader. His smirk widened a bit as he heard the machine beep to acknowledge it, and the door unlocked itself.

He reached out and pushed it open, stepping inside; it was nearly entirely dark, the only light coming from the fluorescent ones in the hallway behind him, casting a cold gleam into the room. It illuminated a larger animatronic that was slumped back against the far wall, lifeless and motionless. He approached it, reaching under its chin to feel for the activation switch.

Springtrap smiled a bit, an odd and eerie sort of nostalgia spreading across his features. Golden Freddy's features were re-molded like his own to resemble more of the "kid-friendly" toy animatronics, but like Springtrap, he was still the same on the inside. He felt the switch and slid it into the "on" position.

 _"_ _It's time for us to get to work, my old 'friend'…"_

[ **Author's Notes:** Hey guys! Thanks so very much for being patient on this chapter. My two jobs have been crazy lately, but it's looking like I'll have a bit more time to write now, so I should be updating a bit more regularly! I hope you enjoyed this new installment, and as a warning, from here on out things will probably steadily get more brutal and dark, so bear that in mind!

Hope you guys are enjoying this so far! Thanks again for the support as well!]


	5. In Tenebris

[To my readers: I'm so sorry that this part has taken so long to get done, life has just been so busy! I'm hoping to update this a lot more routinely now that things are a bit settled down now! Also as a word of caution, this is where the fanfic's likely just going to get darker and darker haha; I'll give warnings at each chapter though. This one has a violence warning for those with triggers, just be warned!]

Ruby did her best to move with some form of grace, but it was hard to orient herself to the angular, jagged motions that her new animatronic body allowed. At first, she felt a propensity to walk like…well, a robot, with no natural flow about her, her limbs and phalanges rigid and unforgiving. Foxy seemed to note this fairly quickly and gestured for her to come to him. She staggered to him somewhat humorously, giving him an embarrassed half-grin.

"Yer movin' like yer joints're welded tagether lass," Foxy said to her teasingly; she looked away a bit, a bit humiliated. He chuckled a bit. "Don' worry, 's not tha' hard ta' get used ta'…when we all woke up tha' first times 'rselves, it was hard ta move very much. Jus' try'n remember how ya walked and moved about when ya were human, aye?"

Ruby nodded, but it was much easier said than done; her limbs felt heavy and cumbersome and her torso moved on a swivel instead of the far more restricted hips that a human had. Not to mention having and controlling a tail felt incredibly strange to her, and it mostly followed her around limply for now. Just trying to step and turn slightly at the same time made her teeter the first attempt, and flat out fall over the second time she tried a simple pivot. Fortunately, Foxy swooped in and caught her before she would have hit the ground.

"Careful thar Ruby! Tha' body we put ya in fer now isn' in tha best shape, admittedly…" he said, seeming genuinely concerned. "Ya'll were in storage fer a while…we'd meant ta reactivate ya sometime, but…tha' workers here woulda prolly found it strange ta have two new animatronics walkin' round when they came inta work one mornin'."

"It's all right," she said, giving him a soft smile as he helped her back to her feet. Her knees bowed in almost comically when she tried to stand, however, and wobbled a bit like a toddler learning to walk. "It just feels like my body's too heavy for me to carry now…I feel so unbalanced…"

"Heh, yah, 's hard tryin' ta get round when you're used ta flesh'n blood," Foxy noted. "'ere, ah'll help ya fer a few minutes and letcha get yer sea-legs, aye?" Ruby nodded, feeling like she might topple over again any minute. Foxy carefully wrapped an arm around her back, gently placing his claw under her armpit joint to support her, and holding her left hand as he walked on that same side and helped guide her for a moment.

"Yer processor will get yer movements down, jus' takes some time," he reassured her. "Try'n feel it out. Take in how yer body distributes tha weight an' all that."

She nodded, and took his advice, mimicking his footsteps a bit to get a rhythm down and try to stabilize herself. After a few moments of walking alongside of him, she started to feel more and more confident that she wouldn't simply fall face-first to the ground any longer. Her tail started to wag slightly side to side, involuntarily, as it seemed to be a programmed function that was built into her processor. Foxy smiled a bit, seeing the confidence in her features as he guided her along. Right before she was going to tell him that she was good to walk on her own, however, she suddenly yelped as Foxy twirled her arm around her in an improvised dance movement but caught her by grasping her wrist before she would have fallen backwards.

"Wha…what was that for…?" she asked, chuckling a bit and still looking a bit startled.

"Ya looked like ya needed some cheerin' up," he chided a bit, suddenly pulling her up again, holding her wrists comfortably to help her regain her footing. "Sometimes we do lil jigs wi' one another, fer the kids…they seem ta like it…"

"Oh yeah…I remember that…" she said, smiling a bit. "My co-workers were all kinds of confused when you all started breaking out in dance, but…it drew in the crowds so they weren't going to argue. I think they chalked it up to a system update or something."

Foxy nodded, then wordlessly started to lead her in a small dance. "Ah'll teach ya some simple moves, aye? Here's hopin' you'll be safe an' sound back in yer original body 'fore ya ever need ta perform with us, but can' hurt ta be prepared."

"I don't mind dancing…" Ruby replied, though given that she only just learned how to walk in this new body, it felt strange trying to dance in it. Her movements were still so rigid, but Foxy moved with the grace of a ballet dancer compared to her. He was patient, and kept her steady.

They danced in silence for a short time, with her emulating his movements dutifully, before she spoke again. "Hey…Foxy?"

"Mm?" he grunted in reply, giving her his attention. He'd just seemed to be enjoying the activity for the time being.

"Do…do you think that this plan is going to work…? That I'll be able to get back into my body? It's not…that I don't trust the Puppet. I know he only wants to help…but, I guess…I'm kind of afraid if I'm in this form too long, I won't be able to return to my old one anymore…"

Foxy seemed to exhale, in spite of the fact that they didn't breathe, by shifting his shoulders down slightly in empathy. He rested a hand on her shoulder for comfort. "I can' promise anythin'…in all honesty, I don' know much about how tha Puppet's powers work. But…if he's confident that you'll be all right, then I trust 'im…but, I don' blame ya fer feeling nervous. This all happened really fast."

"Yeah, it did…" she replied, looking a bit downtrodden. "It's…ironic, though, isn't it. When I took this job, the biggest thing I was worried about was…having someone come here, or even work here, who had bad intentions…either towards the kids who come here, or me…even my co-workers. Even though this place had a lot of good memories for me as a kid, it's like I always sensed something was off about it. Who knew in the end, though, it would be an animatronic that would cause me more trouble than anything…"

Foxy glimpsed off to the side, his expression a mix of concern and anger. "I jus' wish we woulda caught Springtrap…makes me nervous myself knowin' he's runnin' bout like some filthy bilge vermin…" he said.

"Do you think the others will be able to find him?" she asked.

Foxy nodded confidently. "This place is pretty damn big, but thar's only so many places he can hide," Foxy reassured her. She trusted him, but she still could sense he wasn't entirely confident himself.

Ruby nodded, though she still looked fearful and uncertain. Foxy frowned a bit, and placed an arm around her shoulder in a half-embrace, giving her shoulder a comforting squeeze. "Don' get frightened…I won' let anythin' happen ta ya, lass."

Ruby smiled a bit to him, and nodded. "I trust you Foxy…and, I'll try to do the same for you, too."

* * *

The snow only seemed to be worsening outside, piling up heavily against the windows and doorways into the outside world. The blizzard at times would lighten for a couple hours, only to return again just as heavily. Ruby had managed to find a spare charger for her phone in the Lost and Found bin, but there wasn't even the faintest hint of reception for her to call out. Even if she could, she'd been trapped in here for almost a full day, and no one would be able to reach her…also, she didn't know how she'd explain being trapped in a robotic body with her actual body downstairs in cold storage. At this point, she just had to roll with the situation at hand.

She did manage to get enough juice to it, however, to see that her situation was still bleak; this Nor'Easter wasn't going anywhere anytime soon thanks to another weather system keeping it firmly in place. It disheartened her; she wanted to go home still so desperately. But, she did at least feel decently safe here. Springtrap still hadn't been found, but the animatronics kept an eye on her. Rudy, however, felt it pertinent to almost never leave her side.

"Whatcha lookin' at sis?" he chimed, looking down at her phone and squinting at it a bit. "Huh, las' time I saw humans usin' one of those thingamajigs, they were a lot bigger…"

Ruby couldn't help but chuckle a little at that. "Yeah…the cell phones from the 1980s and early 1990s were a little bigger than this weren't they?" she said, offering it to him since it wasn't much use to her right now. He clumsily toyed with it, his metallic fingers tapping against the tempered glass protector on it. He managed to open one of the games she'd installed to kill time and looked mystified by it.

"Look sis, it's a game! Think I can play a round or two?" he asked excitedly. She chuckled and nodded assent, and he started to tap feverishly on it. Apparently their metal appendages were able to channel some amount of heat, since it responded a little to his actions, but it didn't take long until he "died". He deflated a bit, before she showed him that he could simply try again as many times as he wanted.

Rudy's presence, though Foxy oftentimes found him annoying, was a comfort to Ruby. He reminded her of her cousins' children back home. She was one of the youngest of her family, so she had lots of second and third cousins to entertain. His childlike innocence was also a welcome presence here, with the others so serious. Rudy had been told by Foxy about Springtrap, though in fewer words; he didn't have knowledge of who Springtrap was in life, nor of his intentions, only that he was bad news and to get the others if he ever spotted him. Foxy had informed her that Rudy did not possess the spirit of a child's lost soul, but he was a very lively animatronic and had a persona all the same, so they treated him no differently when he was activated. Freddy believed that he'd likely picked up much of his 'humanity' from observing the others interact, even years ago.

Rudy eventually became bored with the device and gave it back to his sister. "Meh, this storm's a right bore, in'it? When the weather's nice, we'd like'ta explore ous'side, you an' me," he smiled. "Not off property 'course, don' wan' those silly workers gettin' wise to us."

"Yeah, I don't think it would be the best time to go outside right now," Ruby chuckled. "The entrances are all buried in snow right now."

"No, no…we'd even go ous'side in tha winter," Rudy chuckled. "Thar's a window out tha' kitchen tha's real high, we'd climb out there…"

"Doesn't the cold lock up our servos though…?" Ruby asked.

"Only after'a long time…" he suddenly got a somewhat mischievous expression. "Say…whaddya say we sneak out? Jus' fer a minute…I haven't seen ousside in so long. Decades now prolly…"

"Foxy said we shouldn't leave the cafeteria for now though…" Ruby said, look uncertain. She didn't want to go off alone, given the circumstances, though going outside in this weather seemed almost less frightening given the conditions outside. It seemed unlikely there was much threat out there besides the cold.

"Oh c'mon sis, I promise, like…one minute, then we'll sneak on back inside 'fore tha Captain notices we're gone. I promise, pirates' honor," he said, crossing his chest.

Ruby gave him a slight look. "Pirates don't have any honor, Rudy…"

"You know what I mean…" he said, grabbing her hand. She sorta did her half-hobble after him, though in all honesty, deep down inside she couldn't deny that seeing even a wintry 'wasteland' outdoors meant she could see just a bit of the outside world. It almost felt like she had to assure herself it was still there, at this point; all of this still felt so surreal and dream-like to her.

Rudy wasted no time in shifting over one of the freezers they used to store birthday cakes over so they could reach a high window; the snow had gathered high there, but there was still enough room for them to get out. The snow itself had lightened at the moment, so they could at least see a few miles out into the city as they plopped down out of the building. The snow was wet and compacted, so thankfully they didn't sink down more than a few inches, though they slid down the incline down onto the ground.

Ruby felt a rush of familiarity; she remembered the crunch of the snow as she'd walked into work two nights ago. It felt like an eternity now; she could remember being bitter at how cold it was outside and just indoors at the time.

Rudy wasted no time making a snow angel and pelting her with snow balls just as a little kid would. "I've seen the kiddos do this through the windows before, looked fun!" he chimed. Ruby chuckled slightly and joined in for a few moments, feeling a further lifting of the stress that had been a weight upon her for the last couple days.

That all changed, however, when she heard the sound of an engine struggling or sputtering of the far side of the parking lot. She paused, then looked over and saw a pick-up truck sitting with its plow pressing a large batch of snow into one of the snow banks. At first, she and Rudy paused, panicking inwardly. Ruby remembered that the manager's younger brother, Tom, often came to try and plow out the parking lot where he could to help the employees out, though given the amount of snow she hadn't expected to see anyone. It looked like he'd tried a couple attempts and gotten stuck, since the truck was just sitting there. That was when she realized something unsettling; she could see his form sitting in the seat, but there was no movement. The tires weren't spinning either like he was trying to get himself free.

"Sis, what're ya doin'?" Rudy whispered fearfully; she felt herself moving apprehensively towards the vehicle. She didn't answer him, instead feeling transfixed on what was ahead of her. As she approached, she looked down…and could see a heavyset pair of prints in the snow leading up to the driver's side door of the truck, which was ajar.

Definitely not human; they were larger than hers. And speckled with small smears of blood.

Ruby crumpled and cried out in pain into her hands once she reached it. Tom's dead gaze met her, his head slumped against the window of his truck. It was apparent his neck was snapped, given the unusual angle of his startled, empty gaze. Blood dripped from where jagged parts of his spine had broken his skin and from his eyes; he'd been dead at least a few hours. His form was rigid from the cold.

Rudy made a similar sound in reaction, but grabbed her hand, pulling her. "We have to get inside…we have ta tell them wha's happened!" he shouted, trying to break her out of it.

Ruby felt paralyzed though, and she didn't know why. All she could do was feel herself fill with terror, with anger, with horrific sadness and remorse. Her eyes drifted away finally, and saw that the hood was popped open; those anguished sounds from the engine had emerged because parts of it had been ripped out of it. Even from where they were standing she could hear electricity arcing and hear parts of the engine grinding and struggling.

Rudy eventually gave up and suddenly lifted his twin up and over his shoulder, bounding back towards the building. Ruby, however, was transfixed still as he pulled her away.

Tom's phone was on the ground, frozen and dying. She'd glimpsed it; there were texts from Tom saying that he was done and heading out of town. Tom didn't have a wife and kids; no one would know what had happened, no one would come and find him. Not till the storm was gone.

The screen was cracked from being used by sharp, metal fingers.

* * *

Foxy hated being helpless. He'd always thought of himself as the watchdog of their group, unwilling to let the others be harmed or exposed to anymore pain here than they'd already had to endure all this time. He'd trudged out there through the snow, and confirmed what they saw. It was snowing again heavily, so the crime would soon be buried.

It actually pained him; that kid was young. Ruby had stammered he was only eighteen years old. He recognized him too; he and his brother had come here as kids. It was why they'd enjoyed working here and why he'd liked helping out where he could even after graduating high school.

It saddened him…but it also made him enraged. They'd known since all this started that Springtrap had no regard for human life. To him, they weren't anything but insects that could sometimes be useful. He'd killed what Foxy considered to still be a kid for a few engine parts.

There was no obvious struggle; Tom had likely gotten out of his truck when it had gotten stuck. Springtrap, however, had already noticed him and gotten out via a tunnel he'd dug from a basement window. Tom hadn't even seen him coming before Springtrap had him. The heavy snow had masked even the heaviness of their footsteps.

 _One quick snap…_

Foxy shook his head slightly, he couldn't let himself think for too long. He couldn't face some of that, not yet. He also couldn't afford to get himself too angry, either; Ruby, especially was traumatized. She had essentially been catatonic since Rudy had thankfully dragged her inside.

The Puppet had spoken very little; he seemed to be taking all of this in, and thinking about it. He was always the calmest, though Foxy had an inkling that he shared in much of the same anger and anguish that Foxy and the others felt. He was just much better at disguising it and keeping it repressed. Right now, he was doing what he could to comfort Ruby.

She was knelt on the ground, his legs splayed to the sides a bit, her face painfully gripped in her hands. The Puppet was kneeling before her, his hands on her shoulders, speaking quietly to her. Foxy was the only one close enough, watching over them, to hear what they were saying.

"It's all my fault…" Ruby said; her voice held so much sadness, breaking with static due to her emotional state.

"No, it's not..." The Puppet replied, calmly. His tone could be very soothing when he wanted it to be. "He would have come no matter if you were working or not…"

"He could have taken the day off, or waited…I volunteered to come today…even though I knew the weather would be bad…" she said; her voice kept breaking up more and more, making it a bit more difficult to understand her.

"Laurel…listen to me," The Puppet said, gently forcing her to look up at him. "You are not to blame…Springtrap is the one who murdered him. He has done this before…he has killed a great many here, over time. The blood is on his hands, not yours," he said. She shuddered, looking as though she were weeping, though they lacked the capability to do so at first. It always made Foxy think that they felt sadness so much more strongly, being unable to exude or release it in any way. "But…I tell you this, because I know him so well. If he is to ever appear before you, Ruby…he will try to put that blood upon you. He is a manipulator…he will try to weaken you, with his own sins…you cannot let him. Please, you have to tell me you understand. He has done it to all of us before. He has made us feel guilt for the things that he has done…you cannot allow it to happen to you as well."

Ruby paused; it was the first time she'd heard her true name in a while. She couldn't believe that she'd almost forgotten it, already, though being in this body…she also felt like Ruby. But her pain quickly overwhelmed that sensation. She shuddered a bit again, but she knew he was right. From everything that they had told her about Springtrap, he was essentially the Biblical devil…a charmer, and a masterful deceiver. She couldn't allow him to use this to break her. She couldn't guarantee it wouldn't, however; she still couldn't get Tom's scared, empty expression from his mind, or the image of his blood frozen against his truck and the ground.

"In time…you'll understand better. For now though…we have to make sure that you're kept safer. You must not go outside like that again. I understand the temptation, but…it's too risky. Springtrap likely has avenues to see where we are – where you are – and he'll be looking for an opportunity where you are alone to try and take you."

Ruby nodded. "I…I promise I will…" she said, softly.

"Good…for now, all we can do is keep looking for him," The Puppet said, standing.

"How…how are you going to…stop him?" she asked.

The Puppet looked to the side faintly. "I would be lying…if I said I was certain as of now how we will. Springtrap's evil has cast such a shadow over this place that…sometimes, I wonder if he can be fully destroyed. But…he can be stopped, even if it means finding a way to permanently deactivate him in his current form. His soul will remain trapped in there, and we will put him somewhere he cannot be found again…" he looked down to her sternly, but also with an undertone of gentleness. "Will you be all right now? I must resume looking for him as well."

Ruby nodded, though she remained kneeling. He nodded, touching her head softly before he turned and departed.

Foxy felt now he could approach her. She didn't regard him at first as he walked to her, then knelt down and suddenly wrapped his arms around her. She didn't stiffen or resist, and instead nestled her forehead in against his chest. He gently rubbed her back; he wanted to speak, to say something that would remove some of this pain, but he knew it was meaningless to do so. He knew exactly what she was feeling right now.

"He's right, ye know…you can never blame yourself…this place…" Foxy said, trying to find the right words after a few moments had passed.

"This place…is wonderful…it's him…who's evil, who makes it dark…" Ruby finally choked out, after a moment. Her voice was still rough with static. "This place was meant to be fun…it was meant to be somewhere that kids could play, and be safe…he's the one who shed blood here, who cursed it…but…maybe…maybe I can help all of you make it better again," she said, looking up at him. "When I took this job, I did it because of nostalgia…I loved coming here as a kid. I loved how it made me feel; it was like nothing bad could happen here. Even though evil things had already happened, all of you kept it so innocent and carefree anyways…I…I want it to be that way again. And…I want to find a way to free all of you too, maybe…if that's what you want. At least find some way I can help…ease things here. Make it better for all of you."

Foxy couldn't help but smile faintly, and patted her cheek a bit affectionately. "Tha's tha spirit…we're gonna do what we can. Bu'…first'n foremost, I want to make sure yer safe, Ruby…Laurel…" he corrected himself. "That you get out of here…"

She returned his smile a bit, then suddenly wrapped her arms around his torso tightly. It stunned him a bit, since she had seemed to frail and distraught a moment ago. Did he really make her feel better than quickly?

"Thank you, Foxy…for, well, everything you've done for me so far. The others do too, but…you, especially…you're who makes me feel safe here…" she said; her voice was muffled a bit against his fur.

Foxy was quiet; it wasn't the first time he'd heard something similar. The others had all confided in him the same over the years. He'd prided himself in keeping them safe as best as he could. But Ruby…she was so trusting, she felt safe with him almost immediately. The way she spoke of him from when she was growing up, her bond towards him…it made him feel…

… _warm._

Warmth was something they rarely felt anymore. The entire place was cold metal; they were cold metal covered in plastic, faux fur. Everything fake, everything a façade. Yet this feeling was so genuine, a first for him in so long. He of course loved his friends, the others; they gave him similar happiness, of course. But this was the first time he'd felt such a strong desire – a need – to keep someone safe. Ruby was still ignorant, but also innocent. She hadn't been fully broken by this place, no matter what she'd seen today; she could still recover. He could still save her, even if he hadn't been able to save himself or the others. The sense that he could do this – and that she already felt so strongly towards him – fill him with more resolve than anger or sadness now, even if it was only for this moment.

Foxy gently wrapped his arms around her as well at first, then held her more tightly as all of this coursed through him. He could still feel her shaking, rattling ever so slightly, and gently rubbed along her spine, feeling those small shudders subside.

"I'll always keep ye safe, Ruby."

* * *

The image of their embrace crackled slightly; ah, the workers did like to chide that the technology here was almost as old as the building now. Springtrap had been half paying attention as he worked; though that image gave him pause, and he stopped for a moment and approached the old television screen. He'd rigged Laurel's abandoned security tablet to an older, bulky flat-screen television down in the basement; it was how he always knew where they were, where they were looking for him. He didn't have a set 'base' of operations, so to speak. He kept everything consolidated for this reason, so that they couldn't locate him. Not that it was all _that_ hard. This place was so labyrinthine and massive that they'd likely never find him even if he stayed put if he wanted.

Being mobile, however, meant that he could keep his plan in motion…and creep ever closer to his 'prize'.

"I don't think she enjoyed my little display outside very much…" Springtrap half-whispered, sounding endlessly amused; even in the fuzz of the monitor he could see her form still shaking a bit as Foxy consoled her. Springtrap reached up and gently caressed two of his claws down the dusty screen down over her whole form. "Ah…I can't wait to break her…" he said; he sounded almost intoxicated with the prospect, taking in a deep 'inhale' as he imagined it. "I'm going to find so many ways to make her _writhe_ , and drink in her suffering…" he added, chuckling darkly at the end. "Mold her and twist her…make her forget who she was…and what she was…" he paused, looking at the drying blood on his fingers before he licked it off, savoring the faint metallic taste as though sipping a fine wine. He turned and strutted back over into the shadows.

Fredbear's massive animatronic was lying on a maintenance table; it was broken, but Springtrap had reinforced it to hold and maneuver the much larger animatronic's body with ease. It was even on wheels, so he'd been able to transport him so the others wouldn't know he was here. "They rebuilt you somewhat flimsily…such a shame that boy had to die, but, ah – his truck had some parts that'll really allow you to show off that animal-like strength and prowess of yours…" Springtrap chuckled, getting back to work as he continued adding filaments and modified metallic 'sinew' to Fredbear's limbs.

Fredbear was silent a moment, but then shifted; his deep yellow eyes eventually, dimly, started to turn on and they turned to face his companion. "How…much…longer…?" His voice was deep like a thunderclap, and raspy from age. He sounded angered, which pleased Springtrap. Refurbishment had done little to calm the raw, seething anger that Fredbear had. His observation of this, even as a human, all those years ago, had more to do with all this than those naïve idiots in the floors above had any idea about.

"I should be done with you in only a few more moments…it may pinch a bit," Springtrap chuckled. "I need to make sure that you have enough strength to help me overcome them. They may painfully oblivious, but they outnumber us just a bit, at least for now…I still have a few more to wake up," he added, gleefully. "Who would have guessed that their greedy little expansion here would benefit us so much…?"

"What is it…that you want me…to do, first?" Fredbear asked; his eyes shifted a bit towards the screen behind Springtrap. Foxy was gone, though Ruby was now joined by that insipid 'brother' of hers. They looked to be chatting quietly for a moment, both still shell shocked. Springtrap stopped and gestured, his crimson eyes piercing through the darkness against the screen.

"First…you are going to bring her… _to me_ …"


	6. Altum descendit in

[ **Author's Note** : I changed the murderer's name to William [Afton] starting here; Sister Location hadn't been released when I started this fanfic, so I'm adding that in retroactively. Sister Location and its characters will be playing a heavy role in this story, so I want to make sure that I include that! I'm not sticking super close to what lore has been revealed thus far, just be aware of that.

Also, I finally finished a halfway-decent reference for Ruby; I apologize for the quality, however, as I don't have a scanner at the moment, so I had to take photos of the sketch and colored picture to show it off: Just go to DeviantART and add /art/Ruby-Reference-691238373. won't allow me to post a direct link. You can find my super inactive account there at Darkest-of-Days! Ruby's in the Scrapbook section.

As to why her leg is damaged in that image, well...you'll find that out in the next installment. Enjoy!]

* * *

 _"_ _But mom, why can't we go tonight? I wanted to see what kinda stuff they had that's new for my birthday party next month…" Laurel whined, stomping her foot a bit. She was eight at this point, so there was little excuse for this behavior. She was surprised when her mother didn't scold her, however; instead, her protests were met with a strange silence as Abigail monotonously hung up her coat. It was then that Laurel could see that she was pale, and her eyes were darkened._

 _"_ _Mom…what's wrong…?" she asked, looking confused. Her mother had come home stressed and exhausted before of course. But she'd never seen her look so…removed. It was as though something had been taken out of her._

 _"_ _Laurel…we…we can't have your party there, next month…it's…the whole place…it's closing down…" she said. She took a heavy seat in a living room armchair.  
"C-closing down?! No, it can't! I love going there…!" Laurel half-shouted, though her anger and sadness subdued quickly when she realized just how…weird her mother was acting. It wasn't the same stress that someone had at losing their job. There was something going on. "Mom…why are they closing it? Did…did something bad happen…?"_

 _Abigail wiped off one of her eyes; it was hard to hide tears that flowed so readily. "Yes…but…it's nothing you need to worry about…" her mother forced a small smile. "Who knows…it might…open again, someday…then maybe I can take you there again…"_

 _"_ _Mom…are you gonna be okay?" Laurel asked; she touched her mother's hand, and felt it was shaking a bit._

 _"_ _I'll be just fine, dear…it was just…sudden news, that's all…" she said. "I have to go upstairs and shower, baby…can you be a good girl and wait here by the front door? My co-worker Nancy is just going to stop by and drop off my things for me. I wasn't able to get my things out of my locker before we had to leave…"_

 _"_ _Yeah, I can do that mom," Laurel replied; her mother stood up robotically, and staggered up the stairs to the washroom. Laurel didn't have to wait more than a couple moments before she heard a knock on the door._

 _"_ _Nancy?" she called out; she was too short to look through the peep hole on the old front door._

 _"_ _Abigail? Hello?" She heard a voice, but it wasn't Nancy. It was distinctly male. "I'm just here to drop off your personal things."_

 _Laurel, being eight, didn't hesitate to open the door; maybe Nancy had had something else going on. She unlocked the door it and crept it open just a bit to see who it was._

 _A man was standing there, holding a small box of stuff in his arms. He looked like he was in his mid or upper thirties with dark hair, and oddly reddish brown eyes. He smiled down at her calmly, kneeling down a bit as Laurel shyly stood halfway behind the door._

 _"_ _Well hello there…you must be Laurel. Abigail has told me so much about you," he said; his voice was oddly soothing and gentle. "My name is William…"_

Ruby about threw herself off of her 'bed', one of the recharge stations that she had slanted at a 45-degree angle. The only thing that caught her was half landing on top of Rudy, who remained asleep. Ruby was breathing heavily and grasped her face with one hand, though she startled herself, seeing the glint of the metal. It was so weird that in her dreams she was human only to wake up an animatronic once more. She wondered if the others went through this as well; she couldn't imagine going from feeling flesh to the cool feel of metal once again.

William…that was _him_ , wasn't it? The one who started all this? The Puppet had said that William and Springtrap weren't one and the same any more, she remembered that. It was raw emotion and perhaps the faintest of memories left she told herself, and that was all. Yet that memory…that brief encounter with him, it reminded her of her equally brief encounter with Springtrap. That same smooth voice and odd…charm, amusement…yet, there was so much evil beneath the surface.

Of course, now knowing the truth, all she could think was what her mother went through during her relatively brief year-long stint at this place before it had closed. Had William done awful things to her? Had she known what really happened when she came home that day? It all made Ruby shake and made her processor throb; she knew she wouldn't be able to go back to sleep, so she decided to wander a bit.

She knew Foxy would lecture her, but it was dead quiet at this hour. If Springtrap w _ere_ around, it would be impossible not to hear him right now. Also, they were on shifts of staying awake; she could hear Toy Bonnie and Toy Chica speaking. Mischievously, she decided to eavesdrop a bit. At least it was a distraction from what was racing through her mind right now.

She was to their side, peering slightly around a corner into a narrow corridor where she could see them sitting, half-watching a couple old monitors overhead that were used in these back rooms for security purposes. Chica was giggling, and she could see why immediately and blushed as Bonnie was giving her light, teasing pecks down her neck from the side, his arm across her front.

"Bonnie, you know Freddy's going to ream us out again if he catches us necking while we're supposed to be watching the screens…" Chica said; she was half laughing and half faintly nervous, glimpsing over her shoulder as he rolled his optics a bit and continued.

"Which one, both of them are such oodles of fun in general…" Bonnie teased back, giving her face a playful nuzzle as Chica muffled her laughter a bit.

"Well, I wouldn't exactly want Springtrap finding us like this either…" she retorted a bit, trying to be a bit joking, though Bonnie's demeanor seemed to change a bit. He almost seemed to grow overly protective of her in an instant and held her close.

"I don't want to think about him, or what he'd do if he found you either…" he said, pressing a kiss against the top of her head. Ruby's ears sagged a bit, though she suddenly heard a combination of laughter and stirring as Bonnie suddenly tugged Chica's prop bib off and stood, stepping away from her with it.

"H-hey, give that back…!" Chica shouted, wrapping her arms around her upper torso with an embarrassed stance.

"Oh come on, this doesn't even cover anything anyways," Bonnie chided, looking amused, before he suddenly took off running with it.

"You get back here right now or I'll find Freddy myself!" Chica shouted after him, taking off down the corridor with him.

Ruby was trying to stifle her laughter; though Bonnie had sounded momentarily serious while speaking about Springtrap, those two in particular were so cute together. She'd gotten the inkling there were feelings between them, given their interactions, though it seemed they kept their affections to themselves for in private.

Ruby's attention was jarred a bit, however, when one of the televisions began to static. It was only for a second she noticed, but it still garnered her attention. She looked at them; there was nothing going on in them. Both looked into the two smaller rental rooms that had vent systems leading into them.

Then suddenly they flickered…and both came on with the same image.

Both showed her form, standing alone in the hallway.

Ruby froze; it was from behind, and she glimpsed back and saw the camera in the hallway that was facing her way. She stepped back rigidly, staring at the camera. She glimpsed back at the TVs; it was focusing in towards her more.

 _"_ _Hello Ruby…"_

Ruby's entire body locked up when she heard his voice. It was coming from one of the intercom systems just down the hall. The workers used them behind the scenes when animatronics were being moved around, along with large catering orders and the like; they'd been installed because walkie-talkies had caused malfunctions in the older animatronics. Ruby stared at it, looking horrified and not replying.

 _"_ _You look so afraid…I can see your little tail quivering…"_ Springtrap's voice was so even, oddly gentle and yet dripping with a mocking tone. _"Are you scared of me …?"_ he asked with a static-riddled purr.

Ruby gulped a bit, unwilling to answer. Springtrap chuckled. _"I think that's answer enough…"_

"You'd better hope you don't find me…I'm going to make you pay for what you did to Tom…" Ruby said; she tried to sound strong, she wanted to; there was still so much anger and sadness in her for what he'd done. But her voice betrayed her and shook as much as she was, even as she tried to stand taller and stop cowering. She felt so stupid almost immediately; as though _she_ could do anything all alone…

 _"_ _Ah, yes…poor Tom…you should have heard the way his neck snapped…one quick snap, and he was gone…but his blood was quite tasty…"_ Springtrap said. Ruby could almost feel him simulating the movement of doing so as though he were telling a funny story. _"You know…before I stripped the engine compartment of his truck…I enjoyed watching the life drain from his eyes as he realized he was dying…I'm excited to see how quickly it'll fade from your optics too, Ruby…"_

Ruby suddenly ran; she couldn't stand to listen anymore. It was too horrible, too awful; his voice made her want to wretch. She ran down the corridor and around the corner, stopping by the kitchen where she released a shudder and paused, listening. But the voice followed her, now gently piping from another intercom just inside the kitchen doors.

 _"_ _Of course…as an animatronic, we don't really die…not physically, at least. But emotionally…spiritually…there's so much damage one can do. We're more like humans than even your little friends realize, even now…"_

Ruby kept running, but his voice kept following her. 'He's watching me…he knows where I am…!' she thought, feeling the terror welling up inside of her. It wasn't entirely surprising, as the Puppet had warned her that he likely was observing them to the best of his ability, but right now it was the most frightened she had ever felt. She finally started to feel her energy bottom out near the ballroom and had to pause; the ballroom was under construction and sealed off for the massive expansion they were doing to the entire compound, but there were more intercoms in there to coordinate with the crews while they were here getting the new areas ready. Springtrap's voice sounded like a chorus echoing in the room behind her.

 _"_ _Oh Ruby…you're so timid, so young…so…chaste. I'm going to enjoy you so much…"_

"You aren't going to enjoy anything about me!" she shouted, feeling her anger reach its boiling point. She was just yelling into the air, but she knew he could hear her, somehow. "You have a lot of nerve, talking about me like this…like I'm your damned possession…"

 _"_ _Because you are…you already are, Ruby. The moment you took this job, you belonged to me, just as the others do. They can run from me and from what I am for as long as they want, but at the end of the day, you're all my little playthings,"_ he paused to chuckle. It felt like her fur was bristling, she was so distraught and afraid. 'Don't let him see you're afraid…be brave! He's enjoying that you're terrified…'

"If I'm so meek and timid, why don't you come and try playing with me right now?" she spat back; her voice was more even this time, though it was hard to repress her fear.

"All in due time…"

Ruby immediately stiffened and slowly turned; that time, the voice had come from behind the sealed doors in the construction zone, from just a few feet behind her. She backed away, rigidly, as she saw Springtrap watching her from the other side of the thick glass window of the door, his red eyes glinting in the darkness. He was grinning to her maliciously at her, his servos tapping on the glass gently.

She immediately ran, only pausing to smash a fire axe out of its case to defend herself with in a blind panic. She ran, only pausing to catch herself once more, though she suddenly heard heavy footsteps following after her. As they were upon her, she screamed and blindly swung the axe, barely missing Toy Freddy's head.

Freddy winced almost comically as he dodged the blow, and the axe buried itself into the wall. "Ruby, what's wrong?!" he asked, seeing her suddenly realize it was him and crumple down to her knees.

"Freddy, I'm so sorry…" she murmured. "I thought…I thought you were…"

"Springtrap…? Was he chasing you? Where was he?" Freddy asked, helping support her with his paws on her shoulders as she managed to get back onto her feet. Ruby took a moment to calm down enough to speak coherently.

"In the new construction zone, he…he's hacked into the computer screens, he was watching me…and speaking to me, through the intercoms…" she stammered.

Freddy frowned, looking around to make sure he wasn't nearby, but it was completely silent. "He was just trying to frighten you, Ruby…Springtrap is dangerous, don't get me wrong in the slightest, but…he goes out of his way to get you scared and on edge first and foremost. If you ever see him or hear him again, you need get as far away from him as you can and find one of us, all right?"

Ruby nodded. "I know…I should have, I just…" she looked down at her feet. "I almost wanted him to try…to try to take me…so I could make him pay for what he did…and it's so stupid, because I'm not strong, and he'd wipe the floor with me…but I…I hate him so much…" she choked. She felt like such an idiot for goading him even a bit like she had.

"It's understandable…I'm sure we'd all agree with you on wanting to do the same…" Freddy said. "But…the Puppet thinks that he has help now…so…it's becoming more and more important for us to stay together."

"Help…?" Ruby asked, looking to Freddy for answers.

"I'll let him explain it to you, tomorrow…and I'll let him know that Springtrap came out of hiding for a bit, but for now you need to get some rest, and we need to get you somewhere safe," Freddy insisted.

"I can't go back to sleep…I keep having nightmares…" she said, walking alongside of him and rubbing her face. Toy Freddy kept a hand on her shoulder to help steady her and also help her calm down a bit. "And knowing he's watching me…it keeps feeling likely nowhere is safe…"

"I think I have a solution to that…" Freddy said, having her pause outside another recharging room. He opened the door softly, and Ruby could see Foxy 'asleep' on his recharge pad, which was angled back completely horizontally. Ruby looked at Freddy curiously.

"Go and lay with him," Freddy said nonchalantly, gesturing for her to enter.

"Oh, no…I…I don't want to disturb him…" she said, feeling her face heat up a bit.

"Foxy would pretty much only be angry if it wasn't you joining him right now…besides, it's not uncommon for us to bunk together at times for safety, and sometimes just some comfort. Just go and lay down, trust me; he probably won't even wake up. He sleeps like a log," Freddy said a bit humorously. Ruby turned back, then stepped inside. "I'm going to lock this door, just for some extra security," Freddy told her, and she nodded, thanking him before she heard the lock secure in place. They could get out from the inside, but this way no one could get in without a designated key card.

Ruby approached Foxy quietly, a bit meekly, though she did climb up onto the recharge pad and laid on her side facing him, though with a decent gap between them. Having him close did help put her mind at ease for now. She could hear a faint humming as he slept; it must be their version of 'snoring' she thought, trying to lighten her mood a bit.

It didn't take long for Foxy to shift, however, and he stirred a bit. His optics flickered on a bit and he turned, seeing her there. She was half asleep, but looked at him with glazed optics which were dimming.

"Couldn't sleep lass?" he asked softly; before she knew it he was turned and wrapped an arm around her, giving her shoulder a rub.

"A bit…more than that, tonight…" she said, before she explained to him what had happened, both her nightmare and her encounter with Springtrap. His expression contorted a bit with anger, though he seemed to be keeping a cap on it for her sake and instead just shifted so she could be a bit closer to him.

"I'm sorry…I woulda helped…" he began.

"No, it's my fault…I need to learn not to wander…" she replied.

"Tha's jus' it though, ye shouldn' have ta," Foxy spat a bit. "If he weren' here, we wouldn'a had ta put ye in this body, or make ye feel paranoid, or be tormented by that damned freak…" Foxy hissed; she could practically feel him boiling with rage, but he calmed when she reached up and gently touched his face.

"If anything, I just need to try and toughen up a bit…you've all been dealing with him for years now…" she said.

Foxy paused, then his expression softened a bit, and he suddenly rested his head against her shoulder. Ruby was surprised a moment, but then gently started to stroke the fur along the top of his head and face.

"Ye said he mocked ye…fer bein' young, an' weak…" Foxy said, after a moment.

"Yeah…that's right, and I-"

"He's right..."

Ruby paused and looked at him, looking almost a bit hurt for a second. "Tha's not'n insult, Ruby…yer young, innocent, an' pure…yer free from what we've gone through still. Tha's why he wan's ye…"

"You think…he wants to kill me…?" she asked, sounding terrified.

Foxy's gaze shifted, and his hold on her tightened a bit. "No…"

Ruby waited, but he didn't expand on what he meant. It sent shivers throughout her, but he simply pulled her as close as he could at that point, and continued to rub her back and sides a bit until he started to go into his recharge state once more. His presence made her feel better, even if that hadn't helped ease her fears. The warmth from his form, though, enveloped her and made her feel safe and sound for now, and that was what mattered.

After a few moments, she heard him shut down once more for the night. She followed suit not long afterwards.

* * *

Daytime was always slightly less frightening, though with the emergency blinds down it wasn't like there was really that much sunlight getting inside to all of them. Ruby busied herself alongside of the others with fun activities for the time being. The animatronics told her they often goofed around with the things the kids used when no one was there to an extent, like the large activity area or doing the stupid party games.

"Gotta find some way to pass the time," Vixen shrugged, tossing a dart. She was playing Pin-the-Tail-on-the-Donkey. Though the games for the most part were created for kids, however, Ruby found that she was having quite a bit of fun. In fact, much of what had happened the day before had faded a bit, and she felt better. Of course, having not seen Springtrap in that time also helped as well.

Rudy, unsurprisingly, was a big fan of the ball pit, and Ruby had to admit she enjoyed it too. They had already reconstructed the main auditorium of the original building for a large play center and ball pit, so it felt like jumping into a swimming pool of the small plastic balls. Ruby did a goofy little cannonball into it, with Vixen jumping in after her.

"I'm surprised the workers don't notice that the balls seem a bit…flat in the mornings," Ruby noted; their heavy weight definitely did a number on the toys.

"Heh, they have entire warehouses of these things nearby Freddy said…I'm sure they just think the kids from the day before were being too rough with them. They just change them out routinely," Vixen explained, reclining back in them like she were floating, though they inevitably started to sink a bit. Rudy liked to 'swim' around beneath the surface of them and tackle or grab Ruby to startle her, though they did it to one another for a little time before Ruby paused, seeing Foxy standing at the edge of the pit. He smiled a bit to her.

"Hey Foxy, care to join us?" she offered playfully, tossing one of the balls to him. Foxy chuckled, but shook his head.

"Nah, I'll pass fer now…I was…actually hopin' maybe ye would join me fer a bit, Ruby…" he said; she noticed that his voice was quieter, a bit more demure than his normal, brash tone. Ruby of course complied, and told Rudy and Vixen she'd be back in a bit, before she climbed out. Foxy offered her his hand, and she gingerly took it as he led her across the room, over to a small alcove that was mostly empty, only storing a few unused arcade games and props.

"Is there something you wanted to talk about…" Ruby asked, as he was being strangely quiet. But he shook his head, and instead kept hold of her hand while resting his other hand at her waist.

"I just…thought it would be nice…ta dance with ye again…" he admitted; she'd never heard him sounding so bashful before. It made her feel a blush form along her face, though it wasn't visible to him.

"W-well…I do like to dance…I…I studied it in school alongside theater, and…heh, I wasn't very good at it a couple days ago…" she stammered a bit.

Foxy nodded, and started doing a slow step with her, a rough incarnation of ballroom dancing she noticed. Ruby felt a lot more confident in her movements now that she'd had a bit more time to acclimate, and moved with far more grace than before. She actually started to take the lead a bit, not that Foxy seemed to mind. She noticed his smile only seemed to become more vibrant the longer than they danced.

Eventually, after a while of this, she started to teach him a bit as well. Just basic moves, she'd learned, both for pairs and also some small ballet moves to demonstrate. She thought at first she was probably boring him to tears, but she was genuinely surprised at how engrossed he seemed to be.

"It's beautiful…" Foxy said, after a few moments. Ruby stopped, and could feel herself grow a bit warmer.

"Oh, uh…thank you…I'm a little rusty, it's been a few years now since I danced competitively…" she admitted.

Foxy chuckled a bit, then suddenly gently touched her cheek. "Yer beautiful too though…ye know that, right?" he said, placing a small kiss on her forehead.

It made Ruby's chest skip a bit, probably the equivalent of her heart missing a beat. It was a very tender gesture, and she awkwardly shifted ever so slightly out of shyness. "Heh…if you say so…"

"No, ye are…an' I feel like I need to tell ye that…cause…through the hard times, sometimes it's hard ta remember what and who we are…jus' remember, Ruby…deep inside, yer still Laurel, and yer beautiful…don' let this place change you."

Ruby nodded; his words meant a lot to her, but she also felt like it was a faint warning, an appeal to her to remember who she was. She actually had gotten into a habit of thinking of herself as Laurel, inwardly, so she wouldn't forget who she had been before – who she really was inside, as he'd said. As these days were passing, though, she was finding it a bit more difficult. It was startling to her how easy it was to forget, even in such a short amount of time.

Rudy suddenly poked his head around the corner. "Ahoy sis, you wanna go game hunting with me? Vixen said there's bunches of 'em just down tha' hall, whatddya say?"

Ruby looked back at Foxy, but he smiled and nodded. Ruby returned his smile, returning his peck with one of her own on his cheek before she followed after her 'brother'.

"I thought you said they were 'just down the hall'…your words," Ruby chided him a bit. Rudy looked flustered, pausing to contemplate a moment. They'd taken a couple turns now and had gone a short distance from the auditorium they'd started in.

"Tha's what she said, sis…I know tha Captain wouldn' wan' us goin' much further though…le's jus' look around here, yah?" he suggested. Ruby nodded, and they started to open the few doors down the corridor and see if they could spot anything of interest. Most of the rooms were empty, however.

"Rudy, most of this part of the place is being worked on. I don't think we'll find much of anything," Ruby called down to him. Rudy rubbed his chin. "Now I'm wonderin' if I sen' us in the complete wrong direction…"

Ruby reached the end of the corridor with the last door to check, but was surprised to see it led only into darkness; once her optics adjusted a bit, she could see it actually was a stairway down into the sub-basement, one of the winding, serpentine columns of stairwells that were here and there throughout the place. These ones went down to the lowest levels of the structure if you were brave enough to head down all of them; most of her co-workers were nervous about going downstairs during the rare times that they had to.

Ruby looked down the stairwell, almost hypnotized by it. It was so eerie and dark, with only the first landing of it illuminated by an emergency exit sign. She hadn't taken even one step down, however, before she stopped. The red glow at the bottom vanished and was replaced by two glowing yellow optics that stared up at her.

Ruby didn't recognize who it was, and could barely see them down there. The yellow eyes reminded her of the two Freddy's, but they seemed…different. Larger, brighter…and more fierce. She did, however, step back up and away a bit. "H-hello?" she called down, her voice echoing a bit off the walls. She suddenly heard the shudder and sounds of whomever it was stepping on the stairs as they approached her. Their weight was great enough that the metal stairs moaned and shifted underneath them.

Eventually, Fredbear reached the top of the stairs; by then, Ruby had backed away a long distance, but even at the other end of the room he still felt like he absolutely towered over her. His yellow fur glinted under the fluorescent lights, and his optics were transfixed on her. He had a small, barely visible grin on his face, just enough to show the sharp, glinting teeth in his maw.

 _"_ _Hello…"_

It felt like her feet weren't even touching the floor, she was running so fast. Rudy looked at her in confusion as he stepped out of one of the other rooms before she suddenly seized his hand and dragged him after her in one swift movement.

"Ruby, wha's wrong? What're ye…?" he started questioning her, right before Fredbear suddenly tore around the corner behind her, charging after them. Rudy let out a piercing scream and started running quite a bit faster, overtaking his sister and pulling her along instead.

"Freddy! Foxy! Anyone!" Rudy called ahead of them, his voice echoing down to the auditorium. "We have company, and not tha' good kind!"

Foxy looked up, seeing the two running towards them with Fredbear in pursuit. The monstrous animatronic literally left dents and gashes in the walls as he charged after them; he was slower, however, and Foxy saw his chance immediately.

"Get through the security door and we'll seal him out!" Foxy shouted to them as he scrambled to the door, his hand over the mechanism. The entire compound had been outfitted with lockdown doors, primarily to prevent kidnappings. Some were only thick glass doors, but some were made of metal and heavier for rooms where there were more people to sift through; this was one of the latter.

They ran as fast as they could, with the auditorium only a few hundred feet ahead of them, but the door suddenly activated, grinding to life with the door suddenly starting to close shut. Foxy looked at it in confusion and then horror; he hadn't touched a thing. He tried stopping it from closing, but the key pad simply glared OVERRIDE back at him.

Whatever Ruby had in lieu of a stomach sank; there was no way they'd get through. The door slammed shut just before they reached it. Rudy and Ruby both pressed back against it as Fredbear slowed, stalking towards them, now with an outright demonic grin on his face as he realized there was nowhere for them to run. Ruby looked up, however, and saw one of the AC vents overhead, the panel on it ajar. She suddenly grabbed her brother's shoulder. "Jump off my hands and get up there, now!" she hissed at him in a panic.

"No way, I can' leave you wit' that monster…!" Rudy cried out, shaking his head frantically.

"Springtrap wants me alive…he'll…he'll kill you if he catches you, Rudy…just…please, don't stop looking for me, okay?" Ruby said, giving him a somewhat desperate look as her tone wavered. Rudy looked at Fredbear as he got closer, though he suddenly started to charge a bit again as he realized what they were doing.

Rudy suddenly stepped onto her hand, and she hurled him with all her strength up into the air. A momentary flashback of performing that routine for a cluster of amused and giggling kids flashed through her mind, right before sharp, agonizing pain suddenly jolted down her side as Fredbear seized her violently, his claw-like, purposely uncovered phalanges digging into her side. She let out a cry, and Rudy looked down at her helplessly as Fredbear stalked off with her, carrying her under his arm as she struggled and tried to get free.


	7. Restless Sins

**Author's Note:** Putting a _Trigger Warning_ here, as there is some brief forced sexual contact in this chapter, and I want to caution people who may be disturbed by things of that nature. I'm keeping scenes of that nature pretty brief, but I'll place warnings wherever it appears in the story along with violence warnings as well.

Thanks so much too to everyone who's read, watched and reviewed this story! I always appreciate feedback and comments if you feel inclined to leave one, it really helps encourage me! I'm actually really ahead on this story (like several chapters ahead of this point), but I'm still working on it for the time being to keep the ideas from turning stale that I have for it. Hope you all enjoy!

* * *

Ruby could see very little down in the sub-basement. It was so cold that even in her current state she could feel it permeate through her entire body. The whole place felt like a crypt: empty and completely void of life. It was so dark all she could see was the faint glow of her green eyes reflecting off of the wall, and Fredbear's sharp yellow ones staring ahead of them.

"Where are you taking me?!" she demanded, continuing to try and get herself freed, though he simply crushed her abdomen a bit more against his side where his arm was wrapped around her like a vice grip.  
"Do you wish to guess?" he asked her after a tense moment; she could _feel_ the terrible smirk on his face, and shuddered, asking nothing else.

He carried her along for what felt like an eternity, until they reached an odd part of the sub-basement that felt oddly…new? The stairwells he'd dragged her down had been dusty and covered in cobwebs, but the walls around them gleamed like they'd just been installed, and there was little sign of wear. She realized it was below where the recent construction was for the new auditoriums were going in that they were adding to the compound, so it had to be part of the new addition, though she wondered why they were positioned so deep underground. She had had no idea that it went so far beneath the original building until now; entry-level employees like her weren't allowed down here, and facts about it had been hush-hush. Apparently, they'd brought along animatronics and props from another location that had shut down in another part of the state from what her co-workers had discussed offhandedly.

The lights were suddenly harsh compared to the darkness they'd just been in as they entered the new portion of the structure, and the corridor appeared to be made with pristine white metal; it almost felt more like a sterilized clinic or hospital than someplace where kids could have fun. Fredbear took her to a less stripped part of the compound swiftly, however; there were rooms set up that had carpeting and seemed to be designated for different events and parties, similar to the ones on the upper stories. He suddenly opened what seemed to be a random door and walked into a room.

Ruby stopped kicking and thrashing the second she saw Springtrap. She hated feeling so paralyzed by him, as she had the night before by the construction zone on the ground floor. He turned from where he appeared to be working on the computer setup in the room and grinned widely. It looked like this was still being used as office space, though there were charging tables present, so it looked like someone had been working on reprogramming the new animatronics in here.

"Our guest of honor has finally arrived…" Springtrap chimed in a bemused tone, looking to Fredbear. "Leave her here," he added, his tone suddenly sharper.

Fredbear suddenly and rather unceremoniously dropped her onto the ground; she landed in a somewhat comical heap, growling a bit at her captors as she shook her head a bit and pushed herself up onto her elbows.

"Go and make sure that they didn't follow you here," Springtrap ordered Fredbear, who grunted deeply and did as he was told, departing without another word and locking the door behind him as he left.

Ruby groaned slightly as her processor spun slightly; that wasn't a pleasant height to fall from. Not to mention that her side was still pained, as Fredbear had tore open her faux fur a bit, exposing a few of the wires and metal beneath the surface as he'd carried her. It felt so…weird, seeing that kind of stuff sticking out from her, though oddly the pain felt more subdued than what she'd experienced as a human. As Springtrap approached her suddenly, however, she suddenly felt that same anger return that had engrossed her before resurfacing, and she quickly leapt up and went to strike him. She wanted nothing more than to punch that smug face of his right now.

Springtrap, however, seemed to know that she'd lash out, and caught her fist before it could contact his face. Ruby was shocked at how fast he moved, while he just chuckled at her reaction.

"So, even after a few days in this hell, you still haven't lost all of your fire yet? I'm impressed…" he said, sounding genuine but sickeningly amused. He suddenly started to violently twist her arm in the wrong direction, going against her elbow joint. She let out a cry of pain, but managed to wrench her arm away before he could permanently damage it and instead went to kick him, still blindly fueled by anger. He managed to block that was well, however, gripping her ankle tightly. She wobbled a bit, having trouble keeping her balance.

This time, however, he didn't give her a 'warning', and buried his claw into her lower leg. She let out an anguished cry as he seized hold of several cables and wires in her leg and wrenched them free of her, before letting her go from his grip. Ruby let out what sounded like a strangled exhale and fell back.

The leg swung uselessly from her hip; he'd severed the cables that allowed her processor to control it. It was like the entire limb was completely numb, and the pain of the now sputtering severed wires did not cease. It spasmed and shook a bit as she tried futilely to put any sort of weight onto it. She staggered backwards a bit, trying to keep her weight off of it.

"You didn't learn the first time very well, did you?" he quipped, tossing the cables and wires aside; they struck the wall with a gross, wet thud and slid to the floor. "Do you really want to hurt me so badly, Laurel…?"

"I hate you so much…" Ruby hissed, straining to keep her processor from shutting down because of the damage to her leg; it was hard with all of her pain receptors there firing off at once. "What you did, in this life and the last…what you did to Tom…"

"Tom is literally one victim among many of mine, dear…I've killed a great many children, security guards, even a parent or two…he's no deader than the rest…" he said this coldly and approached her once again, pausing as she shuffled back away from him. "You're the first, though…that I didn't manage to…finish, on my first try…all because of those simpletons upstairs."

"So did you drag me all the way here just so you can kill me?" she spat, looking at him harshly. She felt her insides go cold, however, when a terrible smirk suddenly formed on his face.

"I think Foxy answered it best when he simply told you no…" Springtrap said, now stepping towards her far more aggressively. Ruby yelped and essentially hobbled back away from him, but she reached a wall and found herself pinned. Springtrap slammed his palms on either side of against the wall, essentially surrounding her smaller form with himself. Ruby pressed herself against the cold surface as much as she could, shuddering at the loud bang that his action caused against her head. He laughed deeply and lowly at her.

"You know what I still find the funniest of all of this, Laurel? The fact that you think your friends are any more trustworthy than I am…" he said. Ruby eventually looked up at him slowly.

"And what makes you say that?" she spat at him; the sound of oil and fluids dripping from her leg continued in an eerie pattern as they spoke.

"Because the Puppet has no way nor intentions of ever returning you to the way that you were before," Springtrap replied, bluntly.

Ruby was silent, and just stared at him incredulously a moment, before her gaze narrowed. "You're lying to me…they told me all you would do is try and manipulate me…"

"Let me put it to you this way, Laurel…" Springtrap said, suddenly reaching down and taking a firm hold of her jaw to force her to look up at him. He leaned down so his face was only inches from hers. "The Puppet created the animatronics to act as 'homes' for the lost souls of the children that William murdered all those years ago, correct? I know that he told you all of this; I was listening, and I've heard it many, many times before…"

"Yes…what about that?"

"If the Puppet knew that the animatronics had the capabilities to house our spirits after we die, then why was he the one who goaded the children's' spirits to kill William using an animatronic, and thus create me?" Springtrap asked. Ruby looked at him with confusion, her gaze faltering a bit.

She was silent; she hadn't thought of it that way, and combined with her terror of Springtrap, it was hard to think of an explanation. "Because…he wanted you to suffer the same isolation that the children did, before their souls passed on…"

Springtrap paused, then suddenly started to chuckle, like he was trying to contain himself. "You honestly believe he can do no wrong, don't you? That I'm the devil, hmm? He created me so everything would continue just as it has for decades now…"

"Will you stop being so cryptic and just tell me what you mean?!" she suddenly shouted at him. Springtrap looked slightly taken aback at her outburst, but grinned and nodded slightly.

"As you wish…putting it simply, the Puppet has become obsessed with his little cult upstairs. The original animatronics were like his own children, you know…he 'saved' them, then he led them…kept them alive and functioning even years after these places closed…but he wasn't happy with only a few. So he encouraged the childrens' vengeful souls to kill William in the most beneficial way possible; have him killed in the second springtrap suit, thus sealing his body so it was never found…and also preserving his own soul as well. That is what formed me…and though William and I are not one in the same any longer, I've been left to continue what he started. In truth, I think that my being was cursed from the beginning, though…even before William, I can remember the few people that ever wore me as a skin. It's like I took a small part of them each time they had to don the old suit. But William's existence gave me a more…defined purpose. Killing, tormenting, doing whatever I can to cause anguish here in this place of supposed merriment and fun. And you know what that's created in the long run…?"

Ruby paused, her expression shifting and falling a bit as the revelation suddenly hit her. "More…animatronics that are sentient…"

"That's right…as time went on, more and more victims accrued thanks to yours truly. He led and guided the originals, and then the Toy variations as well when they became vessels too for additional wayward, tormented souls. He never quite reached some of them though, which is why I'm here…" he chuckled, turning to his computers. "The sister location on the other side of the state became my new playground behind the scenes, before it closed down eventually…but I covered my tracks a bit better there. I scattered my victims, kept things quieter, but the place eventually closed when an employee was killed by their 'Scooper' machine…" he chuckled. "The spirits there…are far more restless, you see. And they didn't have the Puppet to whisk them away, or influence them…"

"But you were there…" Ruby continued his sentence, still looking overwhelmed by everything he was telling her.

"That's right. After the original Springtrap suit was damaged in the fire from Fazbear's Fright, I staggered my way there, where I eventually went offline. As I had hoped, they thought that I'd been salvaged and shipped there, so I was taken, gutted, and refurbished. All remains of William were gone by then, so everyone was none the wiser, though that smell still permeated at times…and while I was in storage, I made some new friends…" he smirked.

"You…you turned the animatronics at the sister location against the ones here…" she said, managing to step away from him. No easy task on one leg.

"That's right, Laurel…those that died there, well…let's just say, they had far less pleasant experiences than even the children that passed away here decades ago…" Springtrap said. "I gave them their life, using the same method that the dear Puppet did…for years I thought it was some sort of Pagan ritual or odd magic that he figured out to somehow to bind their spirits to the machines. All it took was some well-placed blood and artifacts," he paused at her confused expression. "Wayward souls that die violently, well, they latch onto what remnants they can find of the life that was throttled from them. All it takes is a small seal or smear of blood in an animatronic suit, along with something that they died with if their memories are to be preserved, or something relating to what they were doing at their time of death…and the soul will remain within that suit until they are able to move on. The animatronics that I've cared for, well…they have plenty of unfinished business to take care of, I suppose you could say…"

"But I don't understand…you said you were the one that killed them when they were human…wouldn't they want their vengeance on you if that were true…?" she asked.

"For a short time, they did…thus, how that poor sap was killed by the Scooper to begin with…a bit of a case of mistaken identity I'm afraid. Though his treatment towards them thanks to management helped make him out to be a good bogeyman…" he chuckled. "They don't know who killed them…some were killed by the original animatronics themselves, as I became quite handy at reprogramming them behind the scenes, while others…I had a hand in, but not in a way that they'd know that I had anything to do with it."

"And what makes you think that I won't tell them it was you that did all of that…?" Ruby replied, giving him a condemning and disgusted look.

"Oh, that part's easy…because my followers are just as deluded as the Puppet's are. To them, I can do no wrong…" Springtrap replied. "I've worked for the last year reprogramming them and altering their memories. There's no shred of evidence you can find now to tie me to any of that…all that they know, and believe, is I am their savior…and that's all they'll ever know. It's funny; the animatronics here must have thought they finally would have some peace. Little did they know I've been busy even during this supposed lull…" he chuckled.

"But…I still don't understand…why would the Puppet hope that more people would die…? He wouldn't do that…" she said, shaking her head a bit in denial. He could be somewhat cold, but he had shown the compassion and pain he'd gone through himself to her. She couldn't believe what Springtrap was saying.

"You underestimate sometimes how much of what they do is still driven by who they were when they died…the other animatronics were all older children, and they've grown up for the most part – especially after having lost their memories. But the Puppet was the original; he's retained all of his memories, all of that pain and anguish…personally, I think it's because of loneliness, because he fears that he really is immortal, and as the spirits of the children eventually will move on he'll end up alone. Since he was the beginning of all of that coming to pass in the first place, there's likely no way that he can as well, so…he's trying to fill the void…" Springtrap replied.

Ruby was silent; she didn't want to believe him, and honestly – she still didn't, not entirely. But she was having trouble figuring out why the Puppet had done what he did. If he'd known that William's death would cause him to be 'reborn' as an animatronic…then why had he arranged for him to die in the way he had?

"Poor thing…you look so torn, now…" Springtrap commented, gently reaching out and giving her cheek a gentle stroke. She pulled back and away from him.

"Even if what you said is true…you're still the one who killed all of these people, who created all of these beings for your twisted entertainment…" Ruby replied, glaring at him. Springtrap's smirk faded slightly.

"I'm just doing what I was made to do, Laurel…" he purred. "I just deviated from the Puppet's plans to follow my own agenda...not that there's much of one, for me…"

"And what is your purpose, then, exactly…?" Ruby asked; her voice shivered a bit, as she really didn't want to know.

His smirk returned, far more vile and awful than before. "To cause as much anguish and suffering as I can manage…" he replied, almost giddily. It made her feel sick.

 _'_ _That's why I'm here…'_

Ruby suddenly pushed off the wall, struggling to get away from him. The drive to escape him was enough that she could stagger on her leg for a moment, but it eventually became damaged further from her efforts and she collapsed, landing onto her front. She started pushing herself up, but once she managed to get herself turned over, she saw Springtrap approaching. She cried out and scrambled backwards, but with only one leg usable still it was difficult to move. He suddenly knelt down and grabbed her wounded ankle joint, causing her to halt as the pain surged up her form.

Ruby had to repress the urge to plead with him to stop; she knew he'd love to hear that, so she settled for glaring at him angrily while clenching her fists and teeth. Springtrap replied with a toothy grin, however, showing off his immaculate yet terrifyingly sharp teeth. Ruby winced and her ears pinned back at that sight, which caused him to laugh a bit more.

"You're hysterical, you know that…?" he suddenly said. "I'm being genuine in saying that too, you know…it's not often I meet someone in this 'line of work' with your kind of expressiveness. Even in that old animatronic…you can tell inwardly you're still of flesh and blood…"

"Am I to…assume that the longer one is an animatronic…the less human-like they are?"

"That's correct…you've probably seen it, just in the way your little friends move about. The Toy animatronics have a much better flow about them, but the old ones…not so much. My own little friends, whom you'll meet soon, would likely fall into the uncanny valley a bit were it not for the chrome bodies and, you know…seamed face plates and all of that…" he smirked.

"I'd rather not…" Ruby replied, not looking entirely enthusiastic about the prospect of meeting them.

"Oh, I insist…but, that'll be later…for now…I thought it'd be nice for you and I to become a bit more…acquainted with one another…" Springtrap said, his crimson eyes glinting.

"H-how so…?" Ruby asked, once again not really wanting to know the answer. Springtrap just let out an airy chuckle, then suddenly pinned her arms down at the sides of her head as he loomed over her in a prone position, now on his hands and knees.

"Tell me something…" he breathed down to her, lowering his face down closer to hers. "A bit of a personal question, but…have you ever…loved someone in your life…? Outside of family, I mean…" he asked.

"Y-you mean like…a boyfriend…?" she asked; this close proximity to him and his position were making her feel vulnerable, or at least moreso than earlier…if that were possible. But maybe if she kept him talking she could delay whatever he intended to do. "No…I haven't. I mean…I…had some stupid puppy crushes as a teenager but…"

"Mmm…I think there's someone else…" Springtrap replied, a wry smile on his face. "You've seemed quite…attached to someone here, ever since you became trapped…"

Ruby bit her lower lip a bit. "Foxy is just my friend…he…I always liked him, growing up…and he makes me feel safe…" she stammered a bit.

Springtrap lowered his face more, so that their noses were almost touching. "Well, that's a good thing, since Foxy is in love with your little friend Vixen…" he chided.

Ruby looked a bit like she'd been slapped. "What…? But…Vixen and Foxy are…they're only friends…they tease each other all the time, and…Foxy, he…he spends so much time with me…"

"Foxy is Mr. Protector, that's why…he was trying to keep you safe and sound. I'm sure they came to some agreement to make certain that you wouldn't feel as though you were intruding, but…I guarantee you that their relationship is quite real, my dear…" he whispered to her, as though he were telling a secret.

"I don't believe you…you're just…you're just trying to make me not trust them…!" Ruby cried out.

"I don't have to make you do anything…if you have half a processor in your skull, you'll make that decision yourself…" Springtrap replied. "If you don't believe me, however, you're welcome to see the proof yourself…"

He pushed himself up and off of her, which gave her a bit of room to breathe, though she saw him tinkering with one of his computers, bringing up some older video feed. "I'll be forward with you, this is from a little time ago, before this whole fiasco with you happened, but I assure you these two were quite…handsy, when they wanted to be…and quite often, until you came around, that is…"

He pulled up a video that was from only a couple weeks prior to the first night of Ruby's debacle. Ruby's skeptical expression fell very quickly as he could see Foxy and Vixen in one of the corridors, playfully embracing, prodding and 'entrapping' one another for a kiss here and there. At one point Foxy caught her around her, giving her a series of sensual kisses up her neck as she giggled and kissed his temple, letting out a playful moan. Ruby let out a small sound, wrapping her arms around herself and turning away slightly. Springtrap's smirk never wavered, and he pressed the button to stop it.

"He just…pitied me…?" Ruby whispered to herself; her whole body seemed to slump. Everything he'd done had felt so…genuine. "Maybe…I just misread his affections…maybe he just cared about my well-being, then…" she said; her voice broke a bit though, betraying how she felt.

"I know it's hard to come to grips when supposed friends are guilty of some…deceit, but…I thought it pertinent you knew the truth…" Springtrap said; Ruby felt him gently trace a claw along her jawline. She felt too distraught to pull away, and he cupped her chin and stroked her cheek. She did finally move a bit, swatting his hand away. She still looked hurt, but some resolve came back across her features.

"Even if all of this is true…it still doesn't change what you've done, Springtrap…" Ruby said, giving him a biting glare. "You're a manipulator and a sociopath…even if you are right, that doesn't change what you've done. If you're through trying to gut me emotionally, I'll be on my way…" she added, turning and limping towards the door.

As she reached for the handle, however, Springtrap suddenly gripped her wrist, then grabbed her head with his other hand and slammed it against the wall harshly. Ruby let out a muffled sound of pain as he forced her to flip around, pinning her arms down at her sides and he leered at her.

"You're stronger than I gave you credit for, I'll give you that…" he said; he looked less amused now, but she shuddered at the hunger in his optics. "But I'm not done with you yet…"

He suddenly leaned his head down and pressed his lips strongly into hers. She let out a startled yelp, and a muffled sound as he forced her mouth open with his own and delved his tongue into her mouth, kissing her passionately. Ruby started to writhe a bit; it was forced and she felt terrified, but also felt a weird warmth grow in her belly. She'd never so much as been kissed before, let along with such feverishness.

Springtrap eventually freed her mouth, though he just gave her a heated smirk before he lowered his face to kiss the crook of her neck sensually, dragging his tongue along her slowly. Ruby let out a mixed sound of disgust and pleasure as she tried to free her wrists from his grasp. "Stop it…! I don't want this!" she shouted. To her surprise he did stop, though he refused to let her go.

"Do you remember what I said…?" he purred. "I'm going to enjoy you…and I will...though this would be much more fun if you'd reciprocate instead of flailing around like that…"

"Why would I reciprocate anything like that for you?!" she spat.

"Mm, well, if it's incentive you want…" Ruby half expected to be struck, or maybe even knocked out cold so he could do as he pleased, but was surprised when he let go of her. He crossed the room, over to a long rectangular container that had a red tablecloth draped over it. "Want to come and have a look…?" he said; he gestured with a finger for her to approach.

Ruby took a few hobbled steps closer, though once he removed the cloth she was rooted where she stood. It was one of the long, expansive coolers…just like the one that they…

"Want to take a peek at what's inside…?" he said, but she already knew what was in there. He opened it, and she looked down in abject horror at herself. Her body was still pristine, though bluish from the cold, but preserved. She looked like she was asleep in there, half-curled up a bit because of the size of the container. Ruby started to pant a bit, feeling panicked. Springtrap reached down and tossled some of Laurel's dark brown hair gently.

"It would be a terrible shame…all I'd need to do is unplug it, and your body would eventually rot…" he said. Ruby cringed as he bent down and kissed Laurel's forehead, before standing and closing it back up. He went to one of the two recharge pads in the room and sat down, looking at her with a smug grin. "So…is that incentive enough for you to behave…?" he asked. "Because if you really want to try and defy me, or leave…then so be it. But I have your one key to going home eventually…and maybe I'll be more prone to give it back if you give me what I want in turn. Otherwise, I'll make use of it…once it thaws…" he bared his teeth. "Fredbear and I just love the taste of human blood…and you've seen he's not too gentle…"

"No…" Ruby could only get out the one strangled word. She felt so pathetic and weak; he really was right. She was nothing but a naïve pushover, wasn't she? But what else could she do? He literally had her life in his hands right now. And as much as being an animatronic was fascinating to her, and as much as – honestly – she did enjoy the experience and some aspects of it…she still wanted to go home.

 _'_ _You really think he'll ever let you go…?'_

She knew her mind was right, she knew what this meant. But the longer she could keep him preoccupied, the better chance she had to figure a way out of here. She went somewhat limp defeatedly. "I'll do…whatever you want…" She barely managed to speak.

"Mm, good girl…" he said, gesturing once more for her to come to him by curling his servo seductively. Ruby tentatively approached him, feeling nervous and disgusted with him and also herself. How could she let him manipulate her like this?

Springtrap stood, giving a sweeping gesture for her to sit. Ruby did as she was told and sat down, then laid down when he prompted her to, though she wrapped her arms around herself nervously.

Springtrap lowered his face down so his lips were gently pressed against hers, airily touching them as he spoke. "You're still a virgin…aren't you…?" he whispered, sensually licking her lips. Ruby shuddered, but nodded wordlessly. "Well…think of it this way…your human body will still be a virgin if you earn it back…"

"I didn't realize that…animatronics were anatomically correct…" Ruby managed to whisper, though it was hard to speak.

"Most aren't…we're a "child friendly" establishment, after all…the older ones are essentially just oversized Barbie dolls…but, whomever made and refurbished us newer animatronics apparently had a sick sense of humor…" he chided. "Granted…I'm sure none of our creators were aware that we're…quite capable of being pleasured, given that we're sentient…a sex drive is one of the most important things any being has, after all, even if…well, we can't use it for its primary function…"

Ruby paused; this almost would have been a humorous conversation if not for the context. "But then what about me…my…body is one of the older ones…" she said.

"It's mostly cosmetic…I can make due with it…" he replied; Ruby suddenly yelped and felt a pulsing jolt up her form as he delved his hand under her covering, tracing his servo along the seam between her legs. Ruby writhed a bit, trying to keep herself calm and not react, but it was difficult to resist it. She wasn't entirely sure if she was truly 'feeling' it, or if the action itself elicited the natural human response she still had in being touched intimately like this. She especially started to both shudder and shake when he slyly found a small gap in the seam and inserted a finger up inside of her. She repressed the urge to let out any sounds that she was enjoying it, though she couldn't help make small, frustrated half-moans as much as she bit her tongue.

"Getting you all hot and bothered, Ruby…?" he quipped, seeming to enjoy her vexation. He shifted his servo around, gently shifting her a bit inside, though she tried to buck him off a bit because the feeling was becoming overwhelming and unnerving. It felt good, great even…but his shifting of her internal parts also hurt a bit and made her wince as well. "Shhh…I'm just making room…" he said, leaning down and kissing the bridge of her nose with an odd tenderness. "You're not designed for this kind of…contact…I have to modify you a bit first…"

The realization of what he was doing suddenly hit her like a bucket of cold water. Her flight response suddenly seemed to kick in, and Ruby suddenly started to writhe more violently and fight back a bit. "No…stop…please…" she pleaded, though she managed to reach down forced his hand out of her and scrambled to get away from him on the platform, pressing her legs together instinctively.

She was surprised when he didn't simply grab her and force her back down, however. Instead, he simply licked his servo seductively that he'd been using to pleasure her while giving her a faintly heated stare. "You taste so sweet, Ruby…"

Ruby let out a small whimpering but also disgusted sound; what kind of hold did he have over her? She detested him through and through, and yet he knew what to say and where to touch her and she felt like goop. "But…if you're that apprehensive, then we'll wait to go further…' Springtrap added, stunning her a bit. "I have other ideas in the meantime…after all…that body of yours isn't held together very well…"

"No thanks to you…" Ruby said, wincing as she felt a small pang of pain from her leg.

"Oh, if you think _that's_ bad…you're going to love what I'll be inflicting on you soon enough…" he replied darkly, making her withdraw further from him. "But…business before pleasure, hm? Why don't we go and meet some of your _new_ friends…"


	8. Welcome' to the Family

**Author's Note:** Hello again everyone! Thanks so much for the watches, reviews and follows, they all mean a lot as always! Also, a small _Trigger Warning_ for this chapter for some recounted violence that is brought up.

Wanted to post another character reference sheet here, this time for Springtrap. I had some old concept art of how I imagined him looking refurbished as he is in this fanfic, but I wanted to create something new and liked how this sketch came out. You can just go to Deviantart and add art/Refurbished-Springtrap-694338166 to take a look (the site doesn't allow writers to post links, it's just under darkest-of-days in the Scrapbook yet again). I've got some other sketches that aren't colored that I'll post as the story continues and I'm going to work on a few more as well. Just wanted to put that here for reference! Hope you all enjoy this new installment.

* * *

Ruby followed after Springtrap silently. It felt like the more they walked, the further away from escaping she was getting. He seemed to sense her apprehension and stopped, turning slowly to look at her, his crimson optics squinted slightly.

"If you've got thoughts of getting out of here rattling around in that head of yours, I suggest you repress them…" he said, simply and sharply, before he continued. Ruby just continued following him silently, offering no rebuttal. Her leg and side were still both throbbing a bit, and she glimpsed around, taking in her surroundings regardless of his threats. This place was a maze, but it seemed to be set up with one long corridor running along several larger rooms and auditoriums. As they passed signs, she read and memorized each of them.

"I heard you talking with Foxy earlier…so…you used to be a dancer, hm?" he suddenly asked. It jolted her attention back to him, though it also sent chills through her. He really did have eyes and ears everywhere, it seemed.  
"Years ago, yeah…I still study it a bit…" she replied. "Mostly ballet, though I was starting to get into duets before money became tight…"

"Well, then, you're going to love Ballora…she's a dancer. The Ballroom is her territory…a word for the wise though…she's rather…touchy-feely, because she's blind…" Springtrap explained.

"Blind…?" Ruby said, confused. The animatronics never seemed to have trouble repairing parts of their bodies that had broken.

"Not technically, she has optics, but refuses to use them and keeps her eyes shut. The person she was before was severely visually impaired, so I believe that it's just personal preference on her part…also, her programming makes it difficult. She was made to look graceful and demure, so her lids are bolted shut on her exoskeleton…" Ruby winced at that. "She refuses to remove them, and even if she did, they'd just be replaced each night when the technicians come. You can't tell sometimes thanks to the way she moves around that she can't see, especially when she dances, but she oftentimes will call out if she hears someone nearby, and will touch your face and limbs to recognize you…"

Ruby just nodded quietly as he opened the door into the Ballroom; it was large and empty now, though it appeared to be almost entirely finished. The stage where Ballora and her small Minireenas were all positioned upon was completed, and admittedly quite beautiful. It had a golden archway over it adorned with glass faux jewels and plastic flowers, and the stage itself was circular, so that when Ballora spun in its center to dance, she resembled a small music box dancer.

Ruby looked at the animatronic curiously; Ballora appeared to currently be powered down, as there was a large charging cable installed into the back of her neck, and while she was standing, her form was slumped form. She was the first humanoid animatronic that Ruby had ever seen, and she thought she was quite beautiful personally. The chrome also looked interesting; she was so used to the older animatronics that all had faux fur. Seeing Ballora's white and blue hues glimmering in the faint light gave her a strange presence in the room. The face plates though…Ruby felt uneasy about those almost immediately. Who thought that those were a good idea for something meant to entertain kids?

Springtrap went to the wall, where her charging cable was plugged into a computer system. He rebooted her, causing her form to shudder briefly, before she stood and reached up, pulling the charging cable free from her neck. The small Minireenas also came to life once she did, though they all seemed to immediately become fascinated with Ruby and gathered at the edge of the stage to look at her.

Springtrap was right; though she still moved somewhat robotically, her movements weren't very different from how a normal person would move, excluding the pivots and swivels of their joints of course. Her head turned; she seemed to know where Springtrap was due to being woken up.

"Hello Springtrap…" Her voice was deeper than Ruby had imagined, but very melodic and soft.

"Good morning," he returned her greeting charmingly, stepping back. "I've brought a surprise for you Ballora…a new friend for our little group of outcasts down here…"

"A new…friend…?" Ballora echoed him, her head turning slightly. She stepped down off of the stage, landing with barely a sound on her pointed feet somehow. Ruby realized she seemed to know where she was already. "I can hear them shifting on their feet…"

Ballora reached out, and Ruby shuddered a bit…but her touch was surprisingly gentle. Ballora touched her forehead, then glided her hand down her nose, mouth, and chin, then up one side of her face and down the other. Ruby realized her processor was likely mapping out her features for her so she could 'see' what she looked like. Ballora's smile widened slightly when she felt Ruby's fluffy rodent ears. "She is an older one, isn't she?"

"In form, yes…but she's only been among our lot for a few days now, so make sure that you're nice," Springtrap relied chidingly.

"It is a pleasure to meet you…I am Ballora," she stated; her voice sounded so rich. Ruby almost wanted to ask her to sing. It also sounded more…lifelike than the heavily mechanized voices of the older animatronics. Her tones varied between syllables and had inflections and emphasis that was different from the older ones.

"M-my name is Ruby…" Ruby replied. Ballora reached down a bit, obviously looking for Ruby's hands. Ruby reached up and allowed her to grasp them.

"Do you like to dance…?" Ballora asked her gently.

"Oh she does…Ruby was actually training to be a dancer and a performer before I brought her here," Springtrap said. Ruby gave him a harsh look, though it softened when Ballora made a small sound of contentment.

"Another dancer…oh, I've pined for another dancer to join me here…" she said, holding Ruby's hands firmly, though not cruelly whatsoever; it came from enthusiasm and not malice. "My Minireenas are the only ones who would dance with me…and it's what brings me the most pleasure here."

"I…I'd love to…" Ruby mustered; it was hard to deny her, since Ballora sounded so genuinely happy.

Ballora laughed softly, weaving Ruby's arms side to side a bit. "It is nice to have another female animatronic as well…Circus Baby will be pleased…" she added. "Do you wish to dance with me…?"

Ruby nodded a bit. "Sure…if you'd like to…" There was something oddly sad in Ballora's voice to her. It almost made her feel…guilty. But also as though she should try and help her or bring her some cheer.

Ballora immediately guided her through an improvised dance; it seemed to combine ballroom and ballet dancing from what Ruby could observe. It had been such a long time since she'd danced that she had a hard time keeping up with Ballora, especially with a damaged leg, but Ballora was patient with her. It made Ruby smile, and helped surface some of her fading memories of dancing in recitals and for different theater productions.

Eventually they concluded with Ballora twirling her once, then holding her out at arms' length. "Thank you…" she said to Ruby. "That's the first time I've gotten to dance with someone in a long time…especially someone that knows how to dance as I do…"

"It was no trouble…I'm sorry that my leg is damaged and I'm kind of off-balance, but…we'll do it again soon, okay?" Ruby replied. Ballora released her hands, but clasped them over her chest as though that brought her great joy.

"I have to go and introduce Miss Ruby to our other friends, Ballora…but you'll see her again soon," Springtrap said. Ballora seemed content with that, and turned fluidly before returning to her stage. She lowered herself down, and sat with her legs bent to one side gracefully as her Minireenas twirled about her and some burrowed in against her affectionately.

Ruby was guided from the room by Springtrap, who clutched her wrist and pulled her along.

"She seems so sad…" Ruby noted, quietly.

"You know…of all the people I've killed throughout the years, I'd have to say her death is the saddest…" Springtrap replied. Ruby wrenched her hand away and sneered at him.

"What did you do to her?" she spat.

"Never you mind that, for now…" Springtrap chuckled. "Maybe once I can trust you, I'll tell you more about my…escapades. But we're on to meet our next new friends. Aren't you excited?"  
Ruby hissed a bit at him, glimpsing back at Ballora's room before she followed him into the next room, reading the sign over the door: "Funtime Auditorium."

It was laid out similarly to the one in the original building, but quite a bit larger. Two stages were positioned on either side of the room with one large one at the far end; she imagined that had to be for when all the animatronics performed together.

"Here on the right side is Funtime Foxy…look familiar…?" Springtrap said, pulling back the curtain to the stage on the righthand side. Ruby gasped a bit; it looked like some sort of hybrid of Foxy and Vixen. "Vixen was originally supposed to look closer to this, and wasn't supposed to be female, but, ah…they just love toying with us. She was restructured as a love interest for your little lover boy," Springtrap said, and Ruby looked away wordlessly. "Funtime Foxy though isn't too much like the one you know…he's an animatronic of fewer words..."

Springtrap activated him, and Funtime Foxy first opened his optics and looked around, before he looked down at Ruby. He looked somewhat disinterested, reaching up and somewhat aggressively pulling the charging cable out of his neck. "Who's this…?" his voice sounded similar to Foxy's, but perhaps a bit higher and lighter and of course without the pirate lingo sprinkled in.

"This is Ruby…I'm introducing her to all of you so she can familiarize herself with everyone…" Springtrap said.

Funtime Fox stepped down off of his stage, and landed heavily; Ruby was surprised at how heavy the new animatronics were, though Ballora had hidden it well with her grace. He straightened, but then wove an arm in front of himself and half-bowed to her. "It's nice to meet you…I am Funtime Foxy." He offered her a hand, which she took somewhat shyly. He gave her a gentlemanly kiss on top of it.

"It's nice to meet you too," she said. Funtime Foxy gently smoothed his finger over some of her fur on her hand.

"She's an older style one, then?" he inquired, and Springtrap nodded. "Interesting…I've always wondered what it feels like to have that, instead of…" he reached up and tapped the metal on his face. It was so refined it almost sounded like he was tapping on glass.

"I guess it helps keep me warmer, although I don't have many receptors to feel it much myself," she said; everything felt about the same with her old servos.

Funtime Foxy nodded slightly. "It's nice to meet you, but I have some rounds to do…" he said, before he suddenly turned and departed from them. Springtrap chuckled.

"That's apparently one feature of any Foxy model you stumble on…they're all protectors. I've told him before he doesn't have to 'scout', but he doesn't listen very well…" Springtrap said.

Ruby watched him go; there were bits of him that did remind her of the original Foxy, though his demeanor seemed far more distant. Foxy was brash and sometimes ill-tempered, but he was still a member of their little family. Funtime Foxy, however, seemed to value his time alone far more.

"Don't let him damper your mood too much…Funtime Freddy is far more…friendly, along with his little puppet, Bon…be a bit cautioned though, he's very, err…passionate, about making new friends…also, he does speak with a bit of a stutter. He's a bit sensitive about that, haven't figured out the bug quite yet that causes that…" Springtrap said; while she'd been contemplating this, he'd crossed the room to the other stage, and was switching off the recharge program on the other animatronic. Funtime Freddy jolted to life immediately, his optics scanning the room sporatically until they rested on Ruby a few yards from his stage.

"Hey Bon-Bon, look…a new friend…who's just like us!" Funtime Freddy exclaimed excitedly, stepping down from his stage heavily and approaching her. She actually had to step back slightly because it felt like he was preparing to run her over.

"Calm down Freddy…you don't want to frighten her, do you?" Bon said to him; the small animatronic's small, child-like voice seemed to calm Funtime Freddy down a bit, and he slowed and approached her far less vigorously.

"I know, I kn-know…I'm just so excited! We haven't made a new friend in such a long t-time!" Funtime Freddy said. "What's your name?" he asked her enthusiastically, both sets of eyes on her.

"I'm Ruby…it's nice to meet you," she replied, offering her hand as a friendly gesture. Funtime Freddy, however, essentially scooped her up and off the ground with his left arm and gave her a (almost too) tight embrace.

"It's nice to meet you Ruby! I'm Funtime Freddy, and th-this here is Bon-Bon…we j-just love to make new friends and have fun. How about y-you? What do you like?"  
"Well, I…I like the same things…I like goofing around and having fun with my friends, and going to parties," she said; it wasn't a lie, either. She'd been a bit of a party animal in school, though a lot of those memories were becoming hard for her to recall. But she'd enjoyed doing the same things with Foxy and the others upstairs during times where they'd attempted to decompress a bit.

She might as well have told him he won the lottery. "Did you hear that Bon-Bon?! She says she -likes everything that we like, including -parties! Oh, I just love p-parties…we'll have to throw you one s-sometime. Even if it's not your birthday, we'll find any ex-excuse to have f-fun!"  
"That sounds nice," Ruby said; if nothing else…he sounded genuine, albeit incredibly manic. Springtrap hadn't been playing that up at all from what she could see. She wondered where he got all of that energy from. Bon giggled a bit to her.

"Ruby is a pretty name," Bon said, almost shyly.

Ruby couldn't help but giggle a bit. "And you're super cute…" she replied.

"Aww, that's so nice of you to say," Bon said, tucking his tiny arms behind his back bashfully.

"Ohh, we're going to have so much fun…I'll have to f-find all of the party g-games I like, and find that old k-karaoke machine they have d-down here…" Funtime Freddy went on. Ruby couldn't help but chuckle a bit. Even her own friends hadn't been this enthusiastic about throwing her a party.

"In due time, Freddy…Ruby just got here, after all. I still need to take her to meet Baby," Springtrap said.

"Aww, all right…but m-make sure that you c-come back around later. I'll have p-plenty of surprises for yoooou," Funtime Freddy said; he held up Bon to Ruby's face, and the small animatronic gave her a tiny, sweet peck on her forehead. Ruby nodded, giggling a bit. "I'll be sure to Freddy, don't worry."

That seemed to do the trick, and he gleefully went off to rummage as he'd said he would. Springtrap suddenly but gently caressed one of her cheeks to get her attention. "You seem to be having a good time…"

"They're…they're all very nice," she admitted. She hadn't wanted to admit it, but she'd misjudged them; for some reason, she'd cast a lot of Springtrap's evils upon them. But she knew that they were just being manipulated like she was. Even though there was little she could do about that, it seemed pointless to not make allies here. Also, she knew that Springtrap had literally put who they'd been as humans through hell; if anything, she felt a strong need to bring them some form of actual joy, instead of whatever fake promises or offerings Springtrap offered them to keep them obedient.

"They are…but it is conditional…" Springtrap purred. Ruby looked at him quizzically. "I'll explain a bit later…we still have one more animatronic to meet…" he said, raising his index finger. "Circus Baby is the last…and I think you'll find her very relatable."

"What makes you think that?"

"She still remembers a tiny bit of what it's like to be human…"

Ruby contemplated that as she followed him. It was obvious to her that none of the other animatronics down here or up there had any recollection of who they were as humans, aside from the Puppet. She had tried talking to Foxy and a couple of the others about some of her memories, hoping to better preserve them in her mind, but was often met with somewhat blank looks. None of them could remember more than flashes here and there, or get sensations of déjà vu at this point. It made her sad, but also had been a bit frustrating, as she could feel her grip on her own humanity wavering.

The last area of the expansion was at the very end of the corridor, leading into the Circus area. It was an apt name, as the entire room matched its theme. This was also where the large play area was in this part of the building it seemed, all of it fresh and new. There were also circus-themed centers around as well, all equipped and 'manned' with small animatronics that were deactivated currently. They creeped out Ruby a bit, as they reminded her of stripped baby dolls like she'd had growing up.

"Those are the BidyBabs…they're sort of the Minireenas of this part of the 'show' and perform alongside Circus Baby…they aren't sentient, but they still share an odd contempt for humans, particularly adults…" Springtrap said.

Ruby actually felt apprehensive enough to stay close to him this time, and followed him to the main stage, where Circus Baby was. She, as with the others, was standing on her indented perch on the stage, her body limp and slumped forward as she charged. Springtrap reactivated her; it took only a few seconds for her body to jolt a bit, and spring back into a standing position. She blinked her green optics slowly, and looked to Springtrap.

"Is it time already to wake up? I was having a nice dream for a change…" Circus Baby said to him. Her voice reminded Ruby a bit of Ballora; there was an odd sadness to it. But there was also more intonation as well, she noted; she had the most…human voice of them, with the most emotion.

"I apologize my dear…but we have a new guest in this part of the entertainment center and I thought you would like to meet her…she was human until fairly recently, so I'm sure you'll both have some things you can chat about…" Springtrap said, standing aside so Baby could see Ruby, who stood there with a curious expression on her face. Baby looked a bit surprised, then a bit curious herself. She unceremoniously dropped her mic, and stepped down from her stage. Unlike the other animatronics, she wasn't very large in structure, though she was barely shorter than Ruby. Baby approached her, squinting a bit in observation.

"How could she have been human recently…? She's one of the models from decades ago…" Baby inquired; her tone wasn't accusatory, but definitely a pinch suspicious.

"I assure you, she was…our 'friends' upstairs placed her into this body because it was what they had available…" Springtrap said, looking back at Ruby. "Well…go on and introduce yourself."  
Ruby offered her a hand. "My name is Ruby…and what he said is true. I…I became sort of trapped here and ended up like this…" she said quietly.

Baby still looked a touch skeptical a moment, but then her features relaxed a bit, and she returned the gesture, shaking Ruby's hand. "I'm Circus Baby…and I'm sorry for the suspicion. We didn't come from a very welcoming nor healthy place before arriving here."

"It's all right…Springtrap told me that…things weren't very good at the other location…" Ruby couldn't help but shoot him a slightly accusatory glance, but he simply replied with a devilish smirk, as though daring her to accuse him verbally. She bit her tongue.

"They were awful…" Baby said; Ruby actually felt a small pang in her chest, hearing the crumpled static in her voice. "It was…a miserable existence. We were treated like slaves…tortured if we didn't perform the way they wanted us to."

Ruby's ears sagged. "They did that to you…?" Of course, she knew that all but she thought they were just lifeless machines, but…if they were truly tormenting the animatronics…then, someone…someone had to have known they were sentient…but how?

Baby nodded slightly, but closed her optics a moment and seemed to calm herself. "It's best not to dwell on that now, though…we're in a new place, and they haven't implemented the same devices to us…there's no electrocution…no Scooper, no pain here…we can start fresh. I'm sorry to be so dark, too. You've probably been through your fair share of bad times too."

"Y-yes, but…nothing like that…" Ruby replied.

Baby smiled faintly. "I at least appreciate your empathy…the others upstairs wouldn't understand. Even if they…came to life under similar circumstances, they were at least treated with some form of dignity…" she said. "They were at least loved by the children…we became feared and hated…that's why they moved us, and closed down the other place…"

"Well, like you said…this can be a fresh start for all of you here…" Ruby said; she couldn't help but reach out and touch Baby's shoulder. It seemed to mean something, as the slightly smaller animatronic looked up a bit at her. "I can't promise it'll be perfect…there's no place that is, after all. But…I think it's best if you can try to put everything behind you that troubles you. I know that's a lot easier said than done, but…my mother always used to say that clinging onto things that make you feel bad will only culminate with time…"

"You remember things your mother told you…?" Baby asked; her voice was painfully silent now. "I can still remember…bits and pieces of a life before this one…of being innocent, and carefree…that's what I was dreaming of, before you came to visit me…"  
"I know those moments can be fleeting…my own memories are starting to fade a bit, and it's scary…but doing your best to remember them is all you can do. Hold onto them as best you can," Ruby encouraged her.

"I will…" Baby said, smiling faintly again. "You'll have to share some memories with me, sometime soon…I'd love to talk about what I can remember sometimes…the others don't understand. They don't remember anything, they only know what their programming is. Every now and then, there's a small inkling…a tiny spark of something there, but…it's always gone before they can remember it completely…"  
"I think that would be wonderful," Ruby said. "I would love to share memories with you…maybe, if we do that, we'll be able to remember more, or find new ones…"

Baby nodded, then looked to Springtrap. "I feel like I may be able to recapture that dream…can you put me back into my recharge state?"  
"If that's what you'd like, of course," Springtrap said. He offered her his hand, and she took it, using it as leverage to get back onto the stage. Springtrap lithely leapt up onto it after her, reattaching the cable into the back of her neck before slipping back down to activate the computer program once more.

Baby smiled once more to Ruby. "I hope I'll see you soon…come and wake me a bit later. I'll share my dream with you then, what I can remember of it."  
Ruby nodded, and Springtrap pressed a couple buttons. Baby's optics flickered, then went dark. Her body slowly slumped forward, and her eyelids shut as she fell back 'asleep.'

Springtrap sauntered over to Ruby. "Well…I think that's everyone here…"

"Not quite…" Ruby said; she'd been thinking of someone else that she'd only met once as well, and looked to Springtrap. "I want you…to tell me about Fredbear."

"Fredbear?" Springtrap said; he seemed a bit surprised she'd asked. "There's not much to tell; Fredbear is essentially rage incarnate. He only exists to exude things like anger, vengeance and pain…not too much unlike me, though with a far more raw and violent nature…"

"But there has to be a reason he's like that…when he captured me, it was like…at any moment he could simply tear me in half and not feel a shred of remorse, and I'd never even met him, nor done anything to him…what…what caused that kind of hatred to brew inside of him?"

"Well, you already know how he was formed…he was actually the first random victim of this place, or rather of this 'franchise', and the only one I didn't plan myself. Do you remember the circumstances under which he was…made? I know that the Puppet told you all of this…"  
"Briefly, yes…he said…that there was a worker, that she was in the spring suit, and she…she triggered the spring locks, and was killed when one went through her head…"

"It was more than just the violence of her death…" Springtrap said, chuckling. "William was the manager at the time that that happened, so I still can remember it just a touch. That girl's name was Tabitha…and she wasn't much younger than you are now, Laurel. She was working for minimum wage, stressed, failing out of school…and that day, the customers were being so terrible to her. Her co-workers wouldn't help her out, telling her she couldn't do anything right…then they essentially forced her to wear the suit. She'd only used it one time before…"  
Ruby felt a tightness in her chest. "She wasn't told about the suit…was she…?"

"No, she wasn't…when she put it on, she went to entertain a private party. The kids were happy to see her, but the parents started reaming her out for being late and threatened to report her for being 'a useless idiot', in their words…and her co-worker who was supposed to be, well, 'me' had had to leave for a bit. Her stress reached its boiling point then. She started to weep…and the moisture, well. You know how those old suits were…just a tiny bit of condensation, and the spring locks were set loose. Two of them penetrated through her skull…"

Ruby cringed, gagging a bit at the imagery that caused. Springtrap seemed to revel in her discomfort, however, laughing faintly, darkly. "Do you know what's the most sickening thing about it? She slumped over, dead in the suit…and the parents just thought she was ignoring them, and walked away to find William and report her. The kids kept dancing around her and didn't realize something was wrong until her blood started to drip down onto them…"

"Just stop…!" Ruby suddenly shouted, looking at him in terror and revulsion. She let out a small, strangled sound and looked down at the floor. "This place…it used to be so fun…I had so many good memories here as a child…how could it have become this terrible…" she whispered, mostly to herself, though she didn't seem to care he could hear her. She swallowed a bit, dryly, and looked to him again. "So…her pain, that anguish she felt…both when she died, and just before it…that's what caused Fredbear to become so enraged…?"

"For the most part, yes…you see, the personalities of animatronics are formed by the kinds of emotions that the victims feel not only at their time of death, but also what led to it…in Fredbear's case, Tabitha was a depressed, suicidal young woman who died painfully, feeling as though the entire world was against her. Her death actually preceded the boy that formed the Puppet…" Springtrap chuckled. "Even though it took some time for her restless spirit to find its new home…"

Ruby looked forlorn. "I feel…empathy for him…even if he is murderous…" she admitted. "I know Tabitha's memories are gone, but…to him, that kind of helplessness, hopelessness…it has to be so suffocating…"

Springtrap was silent. "Mm, would you like to tell him that yourself…? I'm sure he'd find your pity so amusing…"

"It's not pity…pity is different from empathy. Not that I expect you to know the difference. You don't feel anything but malice," Ruby responded, her voice cutting. This actually seemed to anger him, however, as he stalked closer to her. Ruby winced and yelped as he took hold of the tuft of hair on her head and wrenched her head back a bit.  
"Am I going to have to find ways to adjust that attitude of yours again, Ruby…? Need I remind you, I have your one…single…avenue of escape from this hellhole, and if you really want me to remove it, I'll be more than happy to…"

Ruby grit her teeth, but refused to make any sounds of pain, even though it hurt. "My attitude is just fine, thank you…" she replied. "I said I'd do as you told me to…you never said I wasn't allowed to feel for others…"

Springtrap looked at her, a cold and calculating expression on his face, before a small smile curled his lips a bit. "True…I suppose I didn't do that, did I…" he responded, letting go of her hair. "But simply telling you to let go of what humanity you have left won't do, no…it's your instinct to clutch onto that with every fiber of your being. You've said as much yourself, in your conversation with Baby…" Ruby trembled a bit. "No…I'm going to do you one better…"

"You can twist and torture this form, Springtrap…but you can't ever have my soul, or my memories…" Ruby stated, mustering every ounce of courage she could within herself. "You may have stripped most, if not all of it, away from those down here…but I refuse to be part of your little collection. You can make me your slave all you want, in whatever cruel ways you want, but I won't turn into another one of your victims…"

Springtrap was quiet and still for a moment, but then he suddenly started to laugh. It wasn't like before, though, where he simply chuckled darkly at her suggestions, her confusion or her loss of words; no, this time, it was extravagant, malicious, and demented laughter that flowed from the very core of his being. He even wrenched his head back a bit as he laughed, gripping his fists tightly, before gritting his teeth. The look he gave her was enough that she actually felt her optics and body convulse and become agitated, it was so piercing…so malignant.

"I'm going to make you repeat each and every one of those words to me…as I watch the last bit of your life bleed out from you…" he whispered, malevolently. He suddenly lurched forward and reached for her, gripping her jaw once more painfully, though this time his touch became a crushing vice grip. She let out a sharp cry of pain as she felt the joint gears on either side of her face start to warp and bend. "If you believe that what I've done to you so far is even close to the extent at which I can pain you, torment you…and vex you, Ruby…then I've far underestimated your naïvete…" he breathed out mechanically. "I'm not just going to break you, Ruby…I've done that many times before, to all your little friends, each in their own special way. It's exnihilating each and every time, there's no doubt about that…but with you, I'm going to make you _want_ to be broken…I'm going to make you _beg_ to forget, I'm going to make you _lust_ for what I am, what we've all become…make you thirst for abandonment and emptiness. Do you know the real reason I want to leave your true, human body in tact…even though I could easily destroy it right this moment? Because _you're_ going to be the one who destroys it…" he said. He grinned so widely and viciously that all of his sharp teeth glinted in the darkness, cast beneath his crimson eyes, which were glowing so harshly they cast a reddish hue throughout the entire room. "And once that happens…once Laurel has died…I'm going to take you for myself…and, well…you're going to turn into exactly what Freddy warned you you'd become if I managed to drag you down here. You're going to be my empty, beautiful little plaything…down here in the darkness… _forever_."

He suddenly let go of her jaw gently, then turned and departed down the corridor. Ruby felt her jaw hanging slightly loose, though that pain was nothing compared to the trepidation welling up inside of her.

Every word he'd spoken, he had meant to its fullest extent. He wouldn't stop until he had shattered her, making her unrecognizable not only to everyone else…but also to herself. Ruby felt fearful at first, and then an odd sensation came over her, as she realized that he'd already started to do this to her. Her fading memories she knew was an inevitability…but he'd already shaken parts of her to the core. He'd made her question her friends…he'd made her come here…and become attached to these others, these broken spirits and beings. He did know what empathy was; he was using hers against her, making her share in their pain, bring it upon herself so it would wear her down. He was making her attached so she'd feel too guilted to leave them. He'd tempted her, seduced her…he'd even given her her first sense of physical pleasure she'd experienced in her entire life.

He already had a hold on her…she already found herself _trusting him._ In spite of _everything_ he'd done…everything he'd _told her himself_ that he'd done, that he was going to do…she still found herself wanting to follow him right now, right this moment, even after all of that.

"He's already broken part of me…" she whispered; she choked a bit, then slid down to her knees as the feeling overwhelmed her. She cupped her face in her hands; she could feel small twinges of resolve, to defy him, to not give in to his manipulation…but they were becoming fleeting.

"I can't forget…I can't give in…if he takes my real self and my soul from me…there'll be nothing left of me to ever go home…"


	9. A Seed of Deception

It was hard to keep track of time, especially while this far from the surface, though Ruby felt it couldn't have been more than a couple days at this point. That still felt like an eternity, however, since even her older form only had to recharge every few days, so she kept active with her time.

Springtrap had been mysteriously absent until this point, a fact that at first relieved her, but then started to make her feel more and more apprehensive. If he wasn't around, it meant he was up to something; it seemed like he was always several steps ahead of her.

Ruby did her best not to think of him, however, instead favoring bonding with the animatronics from the sister location. Ballora had started giving her dance lessons, insisting upon it when Ruby had shown an interest. Ballora had an encyclopedic knowledge of all kinds of dances and forms, evens several that Laurel hadn't known. Ruby followed her as best she could, though the damage Springtrap had done to her form already hindered it a bit. Her auto-repair system had fixed some of it, but it wasn't working correctly and hadn't finished the job, probably due to the age of the animatronic body. Her side was still damaged too, from Fredbear's crushing grip. She staggered a bit, trying to replicate some of the movements Ballora did in demonstration. At one point, she lost her balance on her broken leg joint and fell; Ballora barely managed to catch her, but righted her; the constant smile on her features softened into a faint frown.

"Are you all right, Ruby?" she asked; she patted her face, neck and shoulder joints, as though checking her for injuries.  
"I'm okay, Ballora…it's just my leg, it isn't functioning as well as I'd like still," she explained.

"A shame…you have a lot of skill. I can sense it…" Ballora said. "You've learned very quickly…perhaps…there will be a way for us to fix it. I would love to create a dance for us to do together that would show all that you've learned and all of your grace…"  
Ruby smiled a bit. "Maybe someday…" she said, though it made her feel…inadequate, she supposed. Ballora moved with so much poise and flow; she felt like a bumbling idiot compared to her.

"It's a pity you were placed in this older animatronic…but, we'll have to work with it," Ballora said. She helped her stand fully. "Shall I teach you how to waltz?"  
"That would be lovely…" Ruby said; Ballora showed her how to hold her partner, and gracefully led her across the dance floor. Eventually, her leg started to feel too worn, and she had to end their lesson for the day. Though disappointed, Ballora seemed to understand, giving her a gentle touch on the top of her head as a small show of affection.

Ruby wandered a bit; she made the rounds visiting each of them several times throughout all of this spare time she had, knowing that they enjoyed company. Not that they didn't interact with one another at times, but she noticed that they didn't as much as she'd thought they would. She wondered if the isolation of the sister location had prevented them from bonding much with one another.

Funtime Foxy was often wandering about, and not much for conversation, but Ruby sometimes would follow him around and keep him company nonetheless. Sometimes it was just nice for her to walk around a bit too; she didn't like staying in one place for too long. Partially out of anxiety, and partially because in spite of everything, she was still curious about this place. Funtime Foxy did sometimes make small conversations with her, though once he was done talking, that was that. Still, he didn't seem to dislike her company and would slow his pace since she was walking about on a damaged leg.

She went next to Circus Baby; they had been taking time to talk about memories and dreams, what faint ones they could recall. The BidyBabs would gather around and listen; though Ruby still found them a bit unsettling, she was used to them now.

"I had bits and pieces of a memory come to me last night…I remember going and getting ice cream with my parents…" Baby explained. "It was really faint though…I couldn't really remember their faces very much. It was like seeing them through ripples in troubled water."

"Hmm, do you remember what flavor ice cream you had?" Ruby asked; she often asked her prompting questions, since it seemed to help jar her processor a bit. Baby paused and contemplated for a moment.

"Strawberry…that…that was my favorite…" she said, smiling a bit. "I remember now…it's what I always used to get, when the ice cream truck would come down our street…"

Ruby smiled a bit. "I had a dream too…it was from when I was little. It was my first dance lesson…my mom was there, watching me…at that point, my dad…he wasn't in the picture anymore…" she tightened her fist a bit. "He…he wasn't a nice person. He treated my mom and I really bad, but…my mom promised me that once things were better, she'd pay for dance lessons for me. Once dad was gone, I started taking them…" she paused. "I remember being so excited…and she was there, looking really proud of me…" Ruby frowned; it was a comforting memory…but it felt so far away, now. She'd been able to remember it so clearly before.

Also, the latter half of it had changed into recalling one of her lessons with Ballora…she couldn't remember how her original first lesson ended, now.

Baby frowned a bit. "It's not fun…to lose your memories…but there's nothing we can do about it. All we can do is hold onto what we have…and take care of one another. Even though we don't seem close, here…we've always looked out for one another."  
Ruby nodded, sighing. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make this depressing…"

"It's okay, at least you helped me remember something else," Baby noted. "It might be best if we took a break, though…trying so hard to recall these things makes my processor hurt a bit."  
"I'll let you rest a bit more, then…I promised Freddy that I'd visit him…he wants to show me some of the party games that he discovered while rummaging around," she chuckled. Baby nodded, and went back to her charging station. Ruby got up and departed, heading for the Funtime Auditorium.

She halted, however, at hearing a familiar voice calling out to her.

"Sis…sis…!" It was a strained whisper calling out to her. At first, she thought she must be imagining it, but then she realized it was coming from one of the vertical ventilation systems that ran down the wall every hundred yards or so. She rushed to the one she could hear Rudy's voice coming from, and removed a panel of it. She jumped back a tad bit, seeing her twin's blue eyes staring back at her from the darkness…he was hanging there, upside down.

"Rudy…? How did you…?"  
"It's a mighty tight fit, sis…but I think I can pull ye back upstairs through here…" Rudy whispered to her. "We've all been worried bout ye…they haven' hurt ye, have they?"

"N-no…I mean…it's…" she sighed. "It's all a long story…but…"

"We don't have much video feed down 'ere, but we could see you makin' yer way down the hallway tha' las' couple hours…I've been waiting here for a while now…come on, we don't have much time…!" Rudy pleaded with her, holding out his hand to her. "Foxy's on the other end, waiting to pull us up.'  
Ruby reached for his hand, but was suddenly startled as Funtime Freddy came lumbering out of the auditorium, looking for her. She froze, looking back at her brother in terror.

"Th-there you are…!" Funtime Freddy called out in his manic, sing-song voice. Ruby suddenly grabbed the panel and shoved it back into place as Rudy looked at her both startled and confused from the other side. "What are you doing out here all alone in the dark? You promised me you'd come and see what I've found for you!"

"I know Freddy, I'm sorry, I was just…uh, fixing something, quickly…I'll be along in just a moment…" she said to him, forcing an innocent smile.

"Non-nonsense, you come along right now…I have s-so many things to show you!" Freddy said, clamping down on her hand and dragging her towards the auditorium. He paused, however, when a loud thud suddenly sounded from the vent.

"What was th-that…?" he inquired, looking a bit startled and confused.  
"Nothing…! Nothing…just what I was trying to fix…some debris from the construction got stuck in there, that's all…" she said, suddenly changing roles and dragging him along towards the auditorium.

She hated leaving Rudy behind like that, and it pained her because she'd been so close to getting out of here…but if Freddy saw Rudy, she had no doubts he would kill her brother. They didn't trust anyone from up there but her, and only because – ironically enough – Springtrap had introduced her to them.

Unfortunately, as she rushed Freddy away from there, she didn't see Rudy suddenly scramble up and out of the vent, sputtering a bit; the chain they'd used to lower him had broken, and he'd fallen, managing to catch himself before he'd gone too far.

He had the presence of mind not to stay there, though instead he ran around the far side of the auditorium, glimpsing in through one of the back windows from an employee area. He looked on in slight confusion as Ruby kept Freddy preoccupied, playing some of the games with him that he'd found. Ruby had also bonded with Bon, and his sister Bonnet, a pink identical puppet that had an adorable little voice. Ruby giggled a bit as Bonnet – sporting a tiny pair of legs, since she wasn't being used as a puppet – did a little dance for her, replicating some of the dance moves that Ballora had shown Ruby earlier.

Rudy stepped back, looking a bit aghast, as his ears fell a bit. "Sis…are ye…happier down here…?" he asked, mostly himself, though his ears pinned back when he received a response from just behind him, locking up completely.

"She is…just as I had hoped…" Springtrap said, right before he suddenly, and violently, drove his clawed hand through Rudy's back and out his chest plate. The animatronic sputtered and convulsed, before going into shutdown mode, as the damage to his body was near fatal. Springtrap wrenched his hand and part of his arm free, catching the much smaller animatronic's body with his free hand. He smiled, licking some of the 'blood' from his servos.

"Such a pity that you came at such a bad time…but you'll be quite useful for me..."

He slung Rudy's limp body under his arm, and turned, departing down the corridor as Ruby continued to enjoy herself in just the next room, blissfully unaware.

Still, something in her suddenly…hurt. Like she sensed something was wrong, or off. This became apparent quickly, as Freddy paused and leaned down slightly, looking at her.

"You d-don't look so good…aren't you having fun, Ruby?"  
"Y-yes…I just…I think maybe I'm just getting tired, Freddy…" she said, gently.

"Aww, d-don't be such a downer…c-can't you stay a little longer?" he asked. "Bon and Bonnet wanted to show you a little dance they made just to show to you!" He reached up, unscrewing Bon from his wrist and outfitting him with his own little set of legs so he could move independently, putting on his actual hand and stretching his servos a bit. "They've both b-been so excited to show you!"  
Ruby nodded; she thought maybe watching it would take her mind off of whatever was causing her unease.

Bon and Bonnet started to do a little crude waltz together, giggling and dancing in unison and locking servos to do little movements together. Freddy looked endlessly amused, and at first, Ruby was too. Both of them were so cute and sweet; but as she watched them, the unease started to grow. She started feeling her processor pound…and suddenly random flashes of memories started to surface.

They weren't Laurel's though; they were Ruby's. They were moments she'd spent with Rudy, as an animatronic, doing little dances together as a part of Foxy's show. They were interspersed, like a mental montage of their little moments together, but the wave of faint nostalgia it brought also pulled along a distinct sense of dread that coursed through her.

 _Something's wrong…_

"I'm sorry Freddy, Bon, Bonnet…I have to go…" she said, suddenly getting up and turning to leave. But Freddy suddenly grabbed her arm.

"Aww, wh-what's wrong? It's nothing a little f-fun and partying can't fix…!" he insisted.

"Please, Freddy, let go…!" she said, managing to wrangle her arm free. She suddenly took off at a dead sprint, moving quick even on her still-injured leg. She had no idea where she was headed, and instead just let her feet carry her. Something had happened to Rudy though…she could sense it. She could feel something was wrong…

She heard Freddy and the smaller animatronics lumbering after her, calling out to her; this, however, gained the attention of the other animatronics that were down here. She even sprinted past Fredbear, who looked at her with a disgusted disdain, and followed.

Ruby ignored all of them, making her way to a maintenance room at the end of the corridor. She burst in through the door…and was greeted by a familiar, but hated, presence.

"Hello Ruby…" Springtrap cooed to her. She looked at his bloodied hand, and suddenly reached out and grabbed his wrists. She didn't care how much smaller she was, or the threats he'd made.  
"Where is my brother?!" she shouted at him. "What did you do to him?!"

Springtrap didn't answer her, only looked over her head; she turned slightly, and saw the others that were down here gathered at the door. Freddy's commotion had gotten their attention, and they all looked moderately confused.

"Ah…you drew in a crowd. Perfect…" Springtrap said. He suddenly reversed her hold on him and grabbed her wrists, though he released one, holding the other with a crushing and painful grasp, tugging it down so she couldn't stand up straight. "I'm glad you're all here…I'm afraid that I have some…troubling news. It seems that our dear Ruby was trying to leave us down here…"

There was a general shift in their demeanors; Ruby noticed it immediately. Their confusion and curiosity almost instantly morphed into something…dark, and foreboding.

"But…she can't leave us…she promised us that she would be our friend…that she would dance with me…" Ballora said sorrowfully.

"You can't leave…we have all s-sorts of fun stuff p-planned for you, Ruby…" Funtime Freddy added frantically.

"And our memories…" Baby said, though her expression darkened. Neither Foxy nor Fredbear spoke, but their expressions seemed to speak for them with the way they glared in her direction. Ruby looked at Springtrap angrily.

"I wasn't going to leave…! I…he…" she stammered, trying to find the right words. She didn't know how to explain it to them in a way where they'd believe her over Springtrap.

"There's no need to lie, Ruby…the proof of your betrayal is all right here…" he suddenly drew back, pulling a cloth off of one of the maintenance tables. There lied Rudy, his body still badly mangled by Springtrap's attack. Ruby let out a scream of horror and rushed to him, astonished and terrified at the size of the wound. She could tell he was still alive, but just barely, though his body seemed to be working to slowly repair such grievous damage. His optics flickered a bit as his processor labored to try and keep him alive. "Oh gawd…Rudy…" she barely got out, reaching out and touching his face. There was no response.

She cringed, however, when she saw the others' reactions. "It's another one of them…" Baby hissed.

"He's the one who's t-trying to take you away from us? He doesn't look like any f-fun!" Freddy declared crazily, an oddly vicious undertone to his words.

"We won't let him…" Ballora said, her voice suddenly dripping with anger. Ruby could hardly believe it; they had acted so gentle around her, but seeing him…it triggered something in them, some almost feral response.

That was when she realized that Springtrap had set all of this up; she knew he had influenced them, which explained their possessiveness. What she hadn't known, however, was his 'warnings' to them, that her old friends would try to come and take her away once more.

"Just leave, Ruby…we'll make sure he doesn't return and tell them where you are," Foxy said coldly.

Fredbear let out a deep, rumbling laugh that made her circuits freeze. "We can make sure there's nothing left of him for them to find…" he snarled, baring his teeth as condensation dripped from them like saliva.

"No, please…please don't hurt him…!" Ruby shouted out, standing between them and her brother. The others paused, looking at her incredulously. Springtrap was the only one who didn't look at least slightly surprised. "Please…I know that you don't want me to leave…but…he's…he's my brother…I…I won't leave with him, I'll stay here, and…you can take all of this anger you have for him out on me, if you must…" she said, her voice trembling. "But I can't let him die…"

It was strange; she'd only truly met Rudy a few days ago, but being in Ruby's body meant that she had a strong bond with him nonetheless. Those weren't the first memories she'd had of interacting with him; they had sometimes appeared in bits and pieces in her dreams. But even if she didn't remember, she couldn't let _anyone_ die for her sake. As the others continued to stare wordlessly between her and Rudy, she looked to Springtrap. Oh, he looked so pleased with her anguish. She could practically see him basking in it, right now. But she didn't care; she had to do whatever she could to spare her brother this. "Please…please bring him back to the surface and leave him to heal…I promise I won't leave…I won't try to escape again…" she said, lowering her head.

Springtrap, after a moment, nodded. "So be it…though if anyone else comes down here, looking for you…we're going to have a lot of 'fun' with them, I hope you understand that…" He said, going over to Rudy and picking him up into his arms. "Hopefully, seeing what happened to your little twin will deter them from making another attempt…"  
Ruby took in a sharp, shaky breath, but she was still relieved that he agreed. She'd half-expected him to simply butcher Rudy there to make an example of him. She soon learned why he'd decided to spare him, however, as she sensed the anger exuding from the others.

"You lied to us…" Baby suddenly hissed. "You said you'd stay with us…we trusted you…"  
"Were we just entertainment for you while you were 'trapped' down here…?" Ballora continued.

"No…no! Nothing I said or did wasn't genuine…please…you have to believe me…" Ruby pleaded with them; they were bearing down on her now though, threateningly.

"Now now…Ruby has had a lot on her mind for the last few days…" Springtrap said; Ruby at first was confused why he was intervening, but she knew almost immediately it was all another ploy. "I think she deserves forgiveness…but some punishment is in order, too…wouldn't you all agree? How about you, Ruby…?" he said, looking to her knowingly.

Ruby had no choice but to hang her head. "Yes…I think that's fair…" she said, softly. "It's…it was my choice to try and leave…" she said, her voice trembling.

"Then it's settled…you'll have your chance to…reprimand her, in whatever way you feel is pertinent to what her betrayal has done to you…" Springtrap said. "But once it's done, then she's forgiven, and we can move on…"  
There seemed to be a murmur of consensus from the others that that seemed fair, though Ruby could still feel their bitterness. "I'll leave you all to it, then, to think of a suitable penance that she must pay…I have to return this little brat to the surface, as per our bargain…" Springtrap said. He walked through a path they formed for him out of the room.

Ruby saw them all still glaring at her, with a mixture still of hatred, confusion and perhaps a twinge of sadness. All she could do was steel herself, however, and prepare for their worst.


	10. Mandatory Damage

**Author's Note:** The last chapter was a bit shorter than the previous ones, so I figured I'd post another one! I'd ahead enough on the story that there's not a whole lot of need to create huge breaks between chapters either at the moment. Also, this chapter has a stronger Trigger Warning for violence and forced sexual contact, so please bear that in mind! Thanks to everyone following along as well!

* * *

It hadn't taken long for them to reach a consensus on what she would do as her punishment, though every second leading up to it made her feel terrified.

Ruby looked down apprehensively as Ballora gingerly tied her feet down to what looked like some kind of…track that was built into the stage. The other animatronics from the sister location were all gathered there as well, with Springtrap and Fredbear hovering near the back of the Ballroom. They were cast in shadows, but she could see the glow of their optics, watching her intensely.

"Since you felt so tempted to leave us here…we thought it was only fair that you experience what we four have been through…" Ballora said, ominously. Ruby winced as her feet were strapped down harshly into a platform on the track, and Ballora reached up and placed a small device into her neck joint without explanation. She then stepped back with her companions.

"We're going to show you a brief dance and movement sequence…watch us once, then do it until we say to stop…" Baby said, coldly. She and Ballora suddenly began the dance routine portion first; it was relatively straightforward, though the movements became more and more complex after a short time. Once they finished, Funtime Freddy and Foxy showed her the movements, which consisted of specific gestures, mostly as though addressing people, finishing with a bow.

"Now, do that sequence," Ballora said; all optics were suddenly on her.

Ruby awkwardly started to replicate their movements; at first, she didn't have any problems, but when she got to one move where she had to put more weight on her broken leg, she faltered and lost her balance, her body contorting roughly to one side.

Immediately, a strong electric jolt surged through her entire body, coursing up through the floor plate that she was standing on to the small device that Ballora had transplanted onto her. It was searing and crippling pain and she let out a wretched scream of pain, slumping forward.

"Do it again, from the beginning…" Foxy said, apathetically.

Ruby shakily returned to her default position once more and tried again; she managed to make it past that move the next time, though the wound in her leg was sputtering now with sparks. She suddenly started to panic, realizing she wasn't sure what came after the last dance move. She froze instinctively out of confusion…and received another horrific shock.

"No breaks…" Baby said softly. "Start over."

Ruby could feel her processor struggling to keep up with the stress. The electricity didn't just cause her pain, either; with each shock, it felt like it was tearing another tiny piece of her away. She did her best to emulate their movements, and eventually made it through the entire sequence. By this point, she started to notice small trails of smoke creeping out from her joints, and realized that the shocks were starting to fry her internal systems a bit.

"Aww, I d-don't think you smiled near enough…you always have to have a s-smile on your face while you're entertaining all of the k-kiddies…!" Funtime Freddy admonished her a bit insanely, wagging a finger. She was shocked yet again, and this time crumpled down to her knees. Smoke was now piping far more noticeably from her form, and she was starting to spasm a bit. She plastered a pained, forced smile onto her face in spite of this.

"We didn't tell you you could stop…" Ballora said. "Do you know how many of these shocks we were given each and every day at the other location, Ruby?"

She didn't even want to imagine it.

"The workers started doing it for fun…they didn't care that we could feel it…" Foxy said.

Her guts twisted in anguish. The shocks were still jumbling her memories; all of the ones from when she was human, when she was Laurel, felt so distant now that she had trouble recalling them. Instead, her processor was suddenly flooded with bits and pieces of memories with Rudy. Robotically she got back to her feet, though she suddenly started doing another routine. It looked dated and had minimal movements; it was one she'd done with Rudy for the year or so before they were into storage. She felt completely out of control of her body now and moved sharply, a pained smile still plastered on her face.

"What's sh-she doing…?" Freddy said; Ruby wasn't sure herself. It was like her body was moving of its own accord now and her processor had no control over it. She felt the room around her shifting and changing as old memories of performing started to flood her processor ceaselessly. Most of the memories seemed joyful, if repetitive. She sputtered a bit as the memories started to fade…and she remembered the day she and Rudy were deactivated. She could still remember being ripped out of Pirate Cove alongside of him and callously thrown into the cold, dark Parts and Service room, left to rot. Her processor had taken some time to wind down, her body a while after to lose its charge, so she could feel a crushing, terrible loneliness well up inside of her. It made her eyes burn, like all she wanted to do was weep endlessly.

Then there was one final memory, though this one was oddly clear. It was from one of their final performances just before that happened. They were doing a silly minimal little jig on the stage alongside Foxy's oration and performance at the time, and when she and Rudy finished and posed, she looked down and saw a little girl standing in the crowd of kids gathered at the edge of the stage. She had dark brown hair and matching eyes, and was staring at them utterly mystified. She seemed so…familiar…

It was Laurel, as a child, but she no longer recognized herself. She no longer remembered how she had looked then.

She received one final shock for her indiscretion and odd behavior, and this was enough to send her offline. It swiftly went up through her, and though the device Ballora had implanted was designed to keep it from frying her processor, the pain was too much for her to withstand. Her entire world went black in an instant, her body going limp and falling heavily to the ground as her optics turned off.

"It was too much for her to take…" Ballora spoke. She could still faintly hear their voices as she was shutting down.

"These older models never received any kind of shock therapy…she wasn't designed for it…" Baby said; there was now the faintest hint of regret in their voices.

"Well hopefully she l-learned her lesson…now we can get back to having f-fun instead…!" Freddy said, though there was a twinge of uncertainty in his manic voice as well.

"Soon enough, Freddy…" she heard Springtrap's voice coming closer, and he knelt down, resting a hand on her head as her optics flickered a bit miserably. "There's just a couple more things...we need to do…"

* * *

When she woke up, she wasn't entirely sure if she'd come back online. The entire room was pitch black, so it was disorienting to move. She let out a moan of pain, feeling every joint and circuit in her endoskeleton aching and malfunctioning. She couldn't remember a time she'd felt more miserable physically, though even if there was a memory that came close, it was lone gone.

She almost immediately felt some panic welling up inside of her, burning in her torso. She could remember so very little now. What bits and pieces remained of Laurel's life were so faint, they felt almost like she'd imagined them. She clung to them though, knowing that they were the only way she could potentially go back to her old life and escape this, even if it took some time to do so.

Her limbs convulsed and shook, and she drew in her knees shakily. The room around her felt so cold, and empty, given that even the faintest movement on her part caused a plethora of echoes. It also allowed her to quickly hear when someone was approaching her. Instinctively, she tensed, believing it to be Springtrap, though she noticed right away that the being was far too small to be him. Instead, she could see a tiny pair of green optics looking up at her as the small figure approached her shyly.

She looked down, a bit confused, though comforted it wasn't her captor. "Bonnet…?" she said, softly. Baby also had green optics, the same as Ruby, but this being was far, far too tiny to be her.

"Mmhmm," Bonnet squeaked a bit; her voice was somehow even higher pitched than Bon's was. Ruby felt the tiny animatronic rest one of her paws against her leg gently. "Are you okay Ruby…?" she asked, looking up at her with concern.

"I'm…pretty sore, but…I'll be okay…" Ruby replied; she didn't want to concern Bonnet. She and her brother were like children and stressed easily from what she'd seen.

Bonnet let out a small, empathetic sound, and Ruby shifted a bit as she felt her climbing up her lap clumsily. She reached down, forcing her arms to cooperate and gently picked up the little one into her arms. Bonnet giggled a bit, and suddenly gave her a sweet little peck on the edge of her nose.

"Don't worry, I'll stay here with you until you feel better," Bonnet said, nestling into her arms and against her chest.

Ruby mustered a weak smile, and held her close. "I don't want you to get in trouble, Bonnet…Freddy and the others…they're probably still mad at me…" she said, quietly.

"It's okay…they can be mad all they want," Bonnet said; Ruby couldn't help but be a bit amused at the small bit of defiance in her voice. "It was really mean what they did to you…you were just trying to help your brother. I'd do that for Bon if he was hurt…" she said.

"They're mad because I was trying to leave…" Ruby sighed.

"You still want to leave, don't you?" Bonnet asked. Ruby tensed a bit; it was hard to know if Bonnet was acting to eavesdrop on her and gather her thoughts, and report back to the others. But she didn't have the energy or means to lie, now; she was too exhausted, mentally and physically, to care much at the moment.

"Yes…it's not because I don't care about you, and even the others…it's just…I was human until recently, Bonnet…I have…a mother, and friends…they'll miss me, if I don't return someday…" Ruby said, trying to explain it to her. She half expected her to take off then and tell the others, but she didn't. Instead, Bonnet's small gaze drifted down a bit, like she was afraid to ask what she was about to.

"When…when you do, Ruby…can you take me with you?" Bonnet asked. Ruby looked down at her, concerned and confused.

"You want to leave too, Bonnet?"

"I love Bon, and I love Freddy…but…this place…it scares me a lot…" Bonnet said; it sounded like it was taking a lot out of her to admit this, so Ruby gave her her full attention. "It was really bad at the other location…they hurt us a lot there, too. When we came here, I…I was happy. I thought the pain would stop…" she trailed off. "But you…you're in pain…and they caused it. If they can hurt you…they'll hurt each other, or anyone else that makes them mad…"

"You know Freddy and the others wouldn't hurt you Bonnet…they don't know me as well…it's…easier to hurt someone, when you don't know them…" Ruby said, trailing off.

"I know…" Bonnet chirped; her tone was becoming more and more sad, and it broke Ruby's heart. "But they know what it was like, to be hurt…for doing what they were told to do, for…doing things that they know are right. And they did it to you, anyways…" she said.

Ruby sighed; there wasn't much of a way she could defend them from that argument. Bonnet was too little and young mentally to understand that those who were abused and mistreated often became an abuser themselves, to feel some sort of power or control once again.

But she did know one person who could take the blame, and justifiably so…

"What else are you afraid of, Bonnet?" Ruby asked, though she could venture a guess or two.

Bonnet was quiet for a moment; Ruby could see her optics whizzing back and forth a bit like she was terrified. She suddenly climbed up Ruby's front a bit so she could whisper into her ear.

"I'm scared of Springtrap…"

"What about him scares you…?" Ruby asked. Obviously, she wasn't going to scare her further by telling her what she thought of him, herself. But she wanted to be a listening ear for her nonetheless.

"I don't know…he just…he talks to Freddy and the others, and they…they just do what he says. He doesn't make them, or anything…it's what he says…the way he talks…like he's always lying…" Bonnet said, trying to explain.

"He's manipulating them…" Ruby said, gently.

"Yeah, that's the word…" Bonnet said, nodding. She was quiet another moment. "Back at the old place…they could be really mean sometimes, to the workers…even I was mean sometimes, but, the workers were so mean to them, so…it always seemed like it was okay. But Springtrap…he makes them mean to everyone…" Bonnet said, once again trying her best to explain. "He says things to them to make them angry, or sad…and then they're mean…"

"Yeah…" Ruby said, softly. She gently pet the top of Bonnet's head, which seemed to soothe her as she nuzzled in against her. "I think he's mean too…"

"I wanna get away from him…I miss seeing all of the things outside of these places…" Bonnet said. Ruby felt herself choke a bit with sadness. "It's been such a long time…we went from there…then we got stuffed in boxes, and taken here…and it's dark and cold still…"

"I promise I'll take you with me," Ruby said. "I'll make sure of it…"

"Really?" Bonnet said; she looked up at her, wide-eyed, though her ears sagged a bit. "I'm kinda scared though…I…I don't know what I'll do up there…"

"You can stay with me," Ruby smiled. "Even if I do manage to become Laurel again, I'm sure she'd love to keep you at her side and keep you safe…" It felt strange talking about herself like she was a different entity, but…deep down, at this point, she knew she and Laurel were different from each other now. She still had Laurel's memories and personality, but she could feel them waning the more time slipped by.

"Ohh, that'll be so much fun…!" Bonnet said; she could feel her bob a bit with excitement. "Thank you!" she chirped, hugging in against her. Ruby smiled and hugged her back; it was the most genuine twinge of comfort she'd gotten in a long time, now.

Unfortunately, it was short lived, as she could hear someone approaching the large, empty room she'd been deposited in. At first, she'd hoped it was just Freddy looking for Bonnet, but she tensed when she heard Springtrap's voice calling out to her.

"Are you awake yet, my dear…?" he chimed, his voice echoing down the corridor. Bonnet immediately started to shake, violently, against her chest. Ruby scrambled, clumsily, to her feet, and looked around. The room wasn't completely empty; there were some old cardboard boxes in there. She hastily went over to one and gently tucked Bonnet into it. Bonnet looked up at her as though she didn't want to leave her.

"It's okay…just…" Ruby started, though she realized that if Springtrap did something awful to her in here, Bonnet would be witness to that, or at least hear it. She suddenly calmed, and smiled faintly down to her through the darkness. "We're going to play a little game, until he leaves, okay?"  
"Okay…" Bonnet said, smally.

"You said Springtrap makes you feel bad and icky when he talks…so what I want you to do is just close your ears and think – don't hum – some of your favorite songs in your head. Then when he's gone, I'll come and take you out, and you're going to sing me all of those songs you think of, okay?" Ruby said. "But it's really important that you stay in this box, and keep your ears closed…we don't want him to ruin our game, okay?"  
"Okay…" Bonnet nodded. She covered her ears by pulling them down and against her head, blocking the auditory receptors in them.

Ruby gave her another gentle pet, then closed the box and scrambled back over against the wall, sitting on the floor. She managed to flop back down just before he entered the room. She half thought to pretend to still be passed out and see what he did; she blamed morbid curiosity. But she was also terrified of what he might do, as well. So when he entered, she was staring at him, calmly, but angrily. Her body was still convulsing here and there, and she felt so weak. She knew that there was no fighting him now, and given the smug look on his face, he knew it too.

"Don't look so happy to see me, dear…" he purred; he walked to her and knelt down on one knee, taking in her condition. "That shock therapy did a bit of a number on you, didn't it? I suppose we really didn't think much on how an older animatronic body would react to that amount of voltage, but…que sera sera…" He paused to chuckle darkly. "I didn't even suggest that to them, you know…it was their idea. Give you a small taste of what they went through…"

"I appreciate the perspective…but not the twitching in my extremities…" she replied, apathetically. She still did her best to inject humor, even if it was just as a comfort to herself.

Springtrap grinned a bit more, leaning in closer and resting a hand against the wall just a few inches from her head. "Haven't lost those fleeting moments of wit I see…I will admit, I'm genuinely impressed at your resolve, Ruby…most of the others would have been in pieces by now, at least mentally…"  
"Laurel…" she replied. This actually caused him to stop, mid-chuckle, and look at her. "My name is Laurel…I might be Ruby for the time being, but I'm still Laurel, damnit!" she didn't know why she started shouting, but it suddenly welled up within her to profess this loudly. It was because of what Bonnet had said, about the way he spoke. He'd called her Laurel when it was convenient to hang it over her head, but now he called her Ruby.

 _'_ _He's trying to make you forget who are you…don't forget about Laurel! Don't lose yourself!'_

Springtrap suddenly growled, angrily, and back-handed her hard across her face. With the damage she'd already sustained it almost made her go offline again as she fell harshly to the side. Somehow, even though it was almost entirely dark in the room, it still felt like all the shadows around her had turned into dizzying vortices.

"You can hit me and torture me all you want, Springtrap…I'm still…not going to let you win…I won't let you break me…" Ruby said. "Laurel has a life outside of this place, and I'm going to return her to it! You might have prevented everyone else from leaving, but I'm not going to stop fighting you. I won't…I can't! I promised myself…that I wouldn't give in…"

Springtrap was silent, for an eerily long time. She could see he was staring down at her with that same cold, calculating look that he reserved for when he was thoroughly angered. She steeled herself, preparing to be struck again. But as time crept past, and he remained quiet, she actually started to get more nervous.

He suddenly laughed, lowly and briefly. "You don't seem to understand just how deep you already are in all of this…" he said, as though he were talking to a stupid, small child. She sneered a bit, her ears pinned back. "You had your opportunity for escape, Ruby…Rudy had his hand out for you. You could have easily taken it and gone with him back into the light, back to your so-called friends up there…but you didn't…."  
"I panicked…" she said; something about his tone was making her feel more uneasy than usual, which was saying something.

"No…you made a choice," Springtrap said. "You could probably convince me that you were concerned for Rudy, or even dear Freddy's feelings…but you gave up escape. And I have to admit, it probably would have worked too; that was one of the vent systems I didn't have cameras in, so I didn't even know he was there until he came flopping out of it looking for you…"

Ruby grit her teeth and closed her eyes. "You're nothing but a deceiver…"

"No, you're nothing but an idiot…" he suddenly hissed. He didn't need to hit her, his voice was so cruel it felt like a slap. "You want to save their little souls, don't you, Ruby? You want to help them so terribly that you're willing to be a martyr and stay here for their sakes…it's pathetic," he spat.

"No, it's empathy, and love…things you have no concept of…" Ruby retorted bitingly.

"Oh I have plenty of concept of those things, even if I don't experience them myself…that's why it's so easy to keep using them against you, but I'm sure you've figured that out already," he said, touching the tip of her nose in a mockingly playful gesture. "But you're not doing all of this out of selflessness…you're doing it out of guilt."

Ruby furrowed her brow. "I'm not guilty of anything…"

"Oh really? All those years you came here as a child, enjoying this place…taking part in their suffering?

"I never went to the sister location…I had no idea what they were doing to them…"

Springtrap suddenly let out a raspy laugh. "You really, genuinely, believe that they had it any better here?!"

Ruby jumped at the radical, sharp change in his tone. "But that system…it almost fried me, they couldn't have done that to them here…"

"That's just one silly torture method, dear…they had plenty of ways to make the animatronics behave…" Springtrap said. "You can't come to grips with the fact that all of the happiness that you experienced here was a _lie_ , Ruby…every single smile you held, that they gave to you…every gesture…it was forced. No matter if you were Laurel or Ruby, it was a lie. You weren't an animatronic long enough to experience a lot of the pain they went through, so you're just completely oblivious to it still…" he paused for half a moment. "As an example, let's take your dear, sweet Foxy…he's always been the protector of their little herd. Why do you think his animatronic body was always in such rough shape, hmm? The workers didn't take too kindly to his...lashing out, against them, whenever they decided to abuse the animatronics for petty or callous reasons..."

Ruby didn't know what to say. It was like being struck in the stomach.

"Don't you see that what you're striving to do is killing all of them inside?" he suddenly said. Ruby didn't answer. "There's nothing more evil to any of them, even your little friends upstairs, even Foxy…than _humans_. They trust children because they are still innocent and pure, but adults…heh. Why do you think so many security guards died the way they did, shoved into older suits and pierced from all sides? To all of them, being dead, or being in one of these contraptions is better than being a human. To them, it was an ill-guided attempt at compassion. Humans are the ones that tormented them, that made them suffer and harmed them. You can make your arguments that I'm the one who made them animatronics, of course, by ending their lives…but humans are the ones that have beat them, modified them against their will, that have shocked them, struck them, and treated them like the lowest form of waste in existence…and to them, that's what you want to return to. Those upstairs may try to understand…but the ones down here have suffered more. They will never understand…and they won't allow you to heal them if you will inevitably leave them behind. The only 'use' they see for humans, now, is finding a body they can use to escape this place, and nothing more..."

Ruby still didn't respond. What could she say to all of that? Every word felt like he was twisting a knife in her side.

"Well…that's probably enough for you to contemplate for now…" Springtrap said. He reached up and brushed some of the hair in her face aside with a deceptively delicate touch. "I didn't come here for in-depth conversation…though I do enjoy these little chats of ours. They get you nice and shaken for me."

He suddenly gripped her sides, and lifted her up as he stood; Ruby yelped, and found she couldn't put much weight on her legs without sending them into spasms. She didn't have to for more than a second, however, before he suddenly lifted her smaller form and forced her to wrap her legs around his waist. Ruby shuddered, having him pressed against her like this; it made her feel so awful, especially since her body reacted in the opposite direction from her processor, that same deep warmth welling in her torso. "I think it's time for you to fulfill some of my wanton needs, if you'd like Laurel's body to stay intact," he said softly to her. Ruby whimpered, but nodded slightly.

 _'_ _Let him do what he wants…just don't let him take your memories…'_

Springtrap gripped the back of her head and pulled it back, exposing her neck to him. He immediately started to kiss and lick her sensually along there and out along her collar area, savoring her as she writhed a bit underneath him. It felt so good, but it also felt so terrible; she could feel streams of warmth from it being met with cold reality from her processor as it practically screamed he was just seducing her, using her inexperience and her vulnerability against her. She tried so hard not to react; she wished sometimes she could just go limp and make it boring for him, but their bodies worked almost purely off of instinct. She did her best to resist it, but she let out a strained but wanting moan as he kissed her in spite of her efforts. She noticed this seemed to make him hunger more for her, however, when he started to bite her. She winced a bit; it was unpleasant at first, though it started to elicit the same reaction from her when he would bite her, then lick the wound slowly and gently lap up the fluid that bubbled at the surface when it'd managed to break through slightly with his sharp denta. Ruby tensed more and more, warring against him and herself. She didn't want to feel that pleasure – she hated herself for it – and yet she couldn't stop it. Maybe it was because she was so starved at this point for anything but pain and anxiety; it felt as though he were reaching deep inside of her and caressing each and every injury and painful memory.

 _'_ _He wants you to forget…'_

She felt him starting to pant, exhaling heated oxygen from his systems as he continued. His grip shifted from his sides a bit down dangerously close to her rear and she shifted uncomfortably, whimpering a bit. "Don't pretend you aren't enjoying yourself…" he whispered heatedly to her. "You moan so deliciously, Ruby…I wonder what I have to do to get you to _scream_ …"

Ruby started to resist a bit more; she didn't have enough function to try and strike him, but she could at least push him away. This time, however, he didn't appear to be taking no for an answer. He simply pushed up against her more to pin her there. This made her yelp and recoil against the wall further; she just wanted to disappear right now.

"I let you off easy last time…but I want something more from you now," he whispered dangerously. Ruby just continued to thrash a bit, trying to get him away, but it was futile. He was simply too much larger and heavier than her, not to mention she wasn't in fighting shape at the moment. He just laughed lowly at her efforts and simply enveloped her completely, pressing his hips up against her own. Springtrap bit down hard onto the crook of her neck, causing her to let out a pained scream.

She was startled, however, when he suddenly broke away from her a bit and let out a small yelp of pain himself and stopped, sneering as he looked down at his ankle. There was Bonnet, having taken a nice chomp of her own right down onto his leg. She may have looked small and cute, but Ruby was impressed at the force she bit him with.

Springtrap growled and stopped his assault on her, though he suddenly kicked his leg back harshly, knocking the small animatronic off of him. Bonnet let out a panicked squeak and hit the side wall hard. Ruby pushed past him and went to her, picking her up. "Oh Bonnet…I told you to hide…" she said shakily.

"Oh ho ho…Freddy's not going to be happy with you," Springtrap cooed darkly. "That explains why he was so panicked looking for her earlier…"

Ruby ignored him, scooping up Bonnet and holding her close. The little one was shaking and sputtered slightly, but seemed okay. "I'm sorry…" she said, her voice muffled against Ruby's chest. "I heard you crying and I…I didn't want him to hurt you…"

Ruby understood, and was thankful, but she suddenly heard Funtime Freddy shouting down the corridor from the distance. "Bonnet! Wh-where are you hiding? Come on, we c-can play hide-and-seek l-later…we just want to m-make sure you're okay!" he shouted out. He sounded worried and a bit frantic.

Springtrap just gave her a coy grin, then started heading for the door. Ruby, however, beat him to it and took off in the opposite direction from where Freddy was calling from.

"H-he'll be really mad if he thinks you took me…" Bonnet said, sounding frightened.

"I'll deal with that when the time comes…for now, I'm just going to work on getting us out of here…" Ruby replied.

Springtrap let her go, only to see Freddy come stumbling along a moment later. Freddy was probably his favorite to toy with, as he was so easily impressionable. The others at least had an inkling of common sense, but poor, dear Freddy was about as gullible as they came…and unstable as well. They worked quite well in conjunction with one another.

"Springtrap, have y-you seen Bonnet?" Freddy asked; he looked a bit weary, as he'd been combing the place trying to find her. "Bon-Bon and I c-can't find her anywhere!"

"I actually do know where she is, Freddy…she's safe, I promise. But I want to wait just a bit before we get her back, if that's all right…" Springtrap said; he spoke very levelly and calmly. Freddy seemed to be a bit more at ease, though his optics still darted a bit. He still shifted his weight from foot to foot a bit with anxiety.

"If she's s-safe…okay," Freddy agreed. "But…what's g-going on? Why can't we g-get her now?"

"I'll explain in just a moment…first, we need to find the others, though. There's about to be another guest in our midst…"

* * *

It was harder to run than she thought. As she finally put enough space between her and Springtrap, she realized just what kind of poor condition she was in. The shocks had done a lot more damage to her joints than she'd thought possible, and her fur was matted and charred in patches throughout. In short: she was a mess.

Honestly, she knew she wouldn't be able to outrun them for long at all the way she was, and the reality crushed down on her. Bonnet nuzzled in against her, trying to console her. Ruby, however, tried not to let it stop her. She kept moving.

Springtrap had moved her around so many times throughout this place, however, that she didn't have any inkling where she was anymore. It wasn't the main corridor, as there were no signs for the Ballroom nor the Funtime Auditorium. She could only assume they were in some sort of annex or side-area.

Ruby had to pause at some point, stumbling against the wall somewhat harshly. Bonnet whimpered a bit. "You're hurt so bad…" the little one said, looking up at her with large, sad optics.

"I'll be okay Bonnet…I promise…" Ruby said. But she knew Bonnet didn't believe her, since it was a bold-faced lie. Her body was literally spasming every few steps at this point, and eventually, it got to a point where she could barely take a step without having to stop. She slumped against a wall, trying to catch her breath.

"Let me go get help…we can leave later, please…!" Bonnet pleaded with her, tugging on her bandana a bit. Ruby shook her head. "No…I promised you, Bonnet…I can't break another promise…I'm not sure I can keep the one I made to myself, at this point…" she said. "But I'm not going to let you down too…"

She scanned the room a bit. She appeared to have wandered into another large area, similar to the auditorium, though it hadn't had a label on it. She winced and nervously staggered around what appeared to be endoskeletons that were sitting in boxes. "This…looks like some kind of auxiliary play place…does any of this look familiar to you Bonnet?"

Bonnet shook her head no, burying her small face into Ruby's arm. Ruby dragged herself along a bit further, before she stepped out into a clear place in the main area.

There were tables and chairs stacked off to one side, waiting to be set up. She could also see scaffolding and catwalks all around the place, set up to erect what seemed to be a small play area or center in one corner of the room. She sighed a bit, not knowing where to go. She set down Bonnet onto a small pile of bean bag chairs at one side. "Wait right here, okay…? I'm going to see if there's something I can use to repair myself in here…"

Bonnet nodded, though she seemed a bit afraid. Ruby took a moment, and crafted her a small 'cave' in them that she could nestle herself into, before she turned and staggered towards the far end of the room.

Ruby looked all around, feeling more and more subdued by the eeriness of the animatronic parts that were scattered about. But she became transfixed at the end of the room, where there were two large covered containers. Most of the parts she passed by were for animatronics that were larger than her, so they wouldn't be of much help. Ruby timidly approached them, before she pulled the cover down off of one of them.

She stepped back, now a bit mesmerized as she looked back at herself.

Well…not entirely. She stepped towards the transluscent container, and reached up, touching the small placard that read "Funtime Ruby" on it. She turned slightly, seeing there was one for Rudy as well. "They…they made newer versions of us…" she said, quietly. This smaller expansion had to be for them, she thought. It almost made her feel a bit saddened for a moment, remembering how she and her brother had been cast aside so readily years ago. It seemed almost ironic that the characters were now being brought back.

She shakily reached forward and opened the door into the containment unit. It opened, and some foggy subtstance leaked out almost immediately. It felt immensely cold inside of it; she imagined with their circuitry they had to be kept cold. Once it started to clear, she was able to see 'herself'.

Funtime Ruby was modeled similar to Ballora; she looked like she was meant to be a dancer who operated on a similar track, with her pointed toes and dancer garb. Her eyes were black, since she was deactivated; Ruby imagined that if they'd just been shipped there recently, they weren't programmed yet. The pirate garb and feel was gone, however; her metal plating was a silvery white, with blue flowers etched here and there throughout it, resembling patterns and images from antique pottery.

Ruby couldn't help but be curious, though when she reached out to her double a bit, she flinched. Her arm was so ragged and torn from all of this abuse. She shuddered a bit, and stepped back away from it.

 _'_ _A little seal with some blood, or a small piece of who they were…'_

Ruby paused; a new body, especially one that had a newer design, meant that she had a better chance at escaping. Her current one was a lost cause; her auto-repair was no longer functioning, and she knew that finding parts with how old the model was would be near impossible, especially down here. But on the other hand…part of her knew that sealing her soul into a second body meant that what little she could remember of being Laurel would likely vanish. She'd likely still retain some meager bits and pieces, but she'd have only a handful of memories to remind her of who she was before.

But she'd promised Bonnet she'd get her out of here…she'd told Foxy and the others she'd find a way to help them…

How could she do any of that in a body that was falling apart? How could she do any of that as a human...?

 _'_ _There's nothing they hate more than humans…'_

Ruby grit her teeth, and bit her lower lip; it was such a difficult choice to make. If she could remember more than snippets at this point, it likely would have felt like a harder decision. But Laurel's memories were all but gone now, and the Puppet had told her that when she was reunited with her human form, they would still be there. She could have them again, even if she didn't have many of them now.

She just hoped…she could get by without them. 'I know I said I had to retain what memories I can…and not lose myself. But I'm in a losing battle here…I'm out of my element. If I'm going to have any chance of getting out of this place…I have to become more of a part of it, myself…' she thought, steeling herself. She suddenly reached down, and somewhat violently twisted one of her servos. She cringed with anguish, feeling the metal twist; it was like having to break one of her bones. But it did the trick, as she started to 'bleed' from her finger, a mixture of oil and various other fluids that helped keep the animatronics running. It was close to blood as she could muster in this form.

'I have to put it somewhere where it won't rub off easily…" she thought to herself. She looked, and found a small joined area just above the chest plate, and just below the base of the neck. There, it would be safe from being damaged. She gulped a bit, and pressed her 'blood' onto the cool surface of the metal just inside of the seam, focusing everything she could on transitioning into it and being filled with a fearful - but powerful - want to help everyone she'd promised.

It was as though she simply blinked, and found herself standing there, facing the opposite direction and now holding her former body. It was so surreal that she thought for a moment maybe she was offline and hallucinating all of this. She carefully stepped out of the box, relaxing her feet down flat onto the floor, as they'd been locked in an on-pointe position. She carefully took the original Ruby over, and set her down onto one of the boxes.

"This is the second time I've 'died' here…" she sighed; she almost wanted to make a joke, but it was too raw right now.

All she remembered of Laurel now was her name, and some memories of her mother, Abigail, since she was the closest with her. All other memories were gone, but she latched onto what little remained regardless. "I have to go and get Bonnet…" she murmured.

She staggered a bit; this body moved far more fluidly than the one she'd just left behind, and it was hard to get used to right away. She could feel how much stronger and more efficient the circuitry was, however, than in her old body immediately.

She went over to where she'd left the little one in the bean bags, but found them to be empty. "Bonnet? Bonnet…?!" she said, looking around frantically.

She suddenly heard a small, muffled sound, and looked up to see Bonnet, being held in Freddy's free arm with his hand gently clasped over her mouth.. Saying he didn't look too happy at the moment was an understatement.

"You t-took her from me…" Funtime Freddy said; his voice was still had the high-pitched, manic sound to it…but he sounded absolutely livid, even in spite of the fact that his vocals were auto-tuned to be cheerful. "You were going to take her to the surface…"

"Freddy…please, I only wanted to try and help her," Ruby said, stepping back. "I'm sorry…I know I should have told you, but…"

"Bon and Bonnet are like his kids, you know…" Springtrap said, from off to the side; he seemed like he could materialize about anywhere, at this point. "It's all right though, Freddy…even though I want to keep Ruby here for myself in time, we can always share her…wouldn't you like another playmate? Someone to keep you company?"

Freddy almost looked saddened almost immediately, though a slight twinge of his anger remained. "It does g-get lonely, s-sometimes…Bon and Bonnet don't stay charged very long…" he said. Ruby actually did legitimately pain for him; even though Springtrap had said Ballora had died perhaps the most violently as a human, she couldn't help but feel Freddy's demise was somehow worse. Even though he was insane, there was a raw, ceaseless desire underneath it to not be alone, to use parties and fun times to block out some buried pain within him. But she also knew it made it that much easier for Springtrap to manipulate him as well.

"Then that's what we'll do…but first, I need you to do something for me. Do you think you can do me a favor in return for that?" Springtrap asked.

"Y-yes...I can do that," Freddy replied.

"We have a new guest here that's a bit more…human than our current one…I want you to go, and kill her as painfully as you can muster…" Springtrap said.

"Another g-guest…? A h-human...?" Freddy asked. Ruby was just as lost as he was, until she heard a voice echoing through the corridors. It was coming from a long ways away; the place was just so large and hollow that sounds carried very easily.

"Laurel…? Laurel, are you down here?"

Ruby's vision went blurry; it was like she was in another dream, and her processor was scrambling to wake her up before it morphed into a nightmare.

 _"_ _Mom…"_


	11. Tragic Oversight

**Author's Note:** Some small violence warnings in this chapter, but nothing too graphic aside from some rather unpleasant injuries. Thanks everyone for reading along, there's still a lot more to come! Be warned though, this story is only going to get darker as it continues! Of course, there will be plenty of happier moments, especially later on, but this current 'arc' is going to be pretty brutal. Just wanted to forewarn you folks!

* * *

 _"_ _Ugh, I can't wait for a smoke break…" Tabitha groaned; she and Abigail were chilling outside, waiting for William to get there and unlock the doors. They carpooled together, but Abby lived out in the sticks, so they often got here early._

 _"_ _We're not even working yet, goofball…and you really, really need to stop smoking these soon..." Abigail replied, giving her a small but faintly concerned smile. Tabitha seemed to agree, but still pulled one out, and lit it up and smoked it in about a moment flat. "I just want this shift to be over…" Abigail sighed. "I hate having to work here on weekends. I know Laurel misses me, and I hate leaving her alone with Rick…"_

 _"_ _Why don't you just divorce that asshole?" Tabitha asked, looking weary. "Just because he got you pregnant in high school doesn't mean you have to stay with him you know…"_

 _"_ _I know…" Abigail sighed; she wrapped her arms around herself a bit. "I hate having to…his drunken temper tantrums are awful. He hit Laurel a few nights ago…"_

 _"_ _I'd have sent his ass through a window," Tabitha spat. "Why don't you call the police?"_

 _"_ _I did…his brother's part of the department. They won't do anything…" Abigail said, rubbing her forehead. "It's just so hard…Rick kept me from getting about every job I tried for except this one…I couldn't afford to care for Laurel on my own, on this salary…" she paused, looking strained, almost like she wanted to cry for a moment. "Listen…can we not talk about this? I already have a lot on my mind."_

 _"_ _Sure, sure…but you know that sooner or later, Laurel's going to resent you for staying with that loser," Tabitha said, sighing. "Anyways…are you still going to go out for some dinner with me tomorrow night? Even if it's just for a bit...I could use the company…my parents are being major assholes and not talking to me again…"_

 _"_ _I'll try, Laurel's babysitter is at least free on Sundays so I don't have to leave her with her father, and she likes hanging out with Michelle," Abigail nodded. "You know you can call and talk whenever you need to…I know things have been hard on you…"_

 _"_ _I know, it's just…been hard to bring myself to bother you, or…anything…" Tabitha said. Abigail looked at her, worriedly, but before she could say anything, William came strolling up the front stairs._

 _"_ _Don't you two have any life outside of this place? Seems like you always beat me here," he said, grinning to them as he whipped out his keys and unlocked the front door._

 _"_ _Hardy har har…" Tabitha said, dully; Abigail noted how exhausted and deadened her tone was. "What're orders today, boss?"_

 _"_ _Sorry to say, but we're booked solid today…I'm going to need you two to suit up," William said nonchalantly. Both women winced and groaned._

 _"_ _Oh come on," Tabitha said, rubbing her forehead. "I hate those things, they creep me out…not to mention I've only worn the suit once for like…five minutes during orientation. I don't even remember how they work…"_

 _"_ _Just have Abby show you then, she's worn them dozens of times," William said. "After all, she's the one who fits into them the best."_

 _"_ _Is that a short joke?" Abigail chimed; raising an eyebrow. It was true though that the shortest girls often had to wear them, as even though the suits themselves were large, with all of the springs and locks and mechanisms in them, there wasn't much wiggle room for the men to wear them without feeling pretty uncomfortable._

 _"_ _Maybe," William smirked a bit. "Show Tabitha how to get into the Fredbear suit before you get yourself set with Spring Bonnie, okay?"_

 _"_ _You got it…" Abigail said wearily. Both of them put their things into their lockers, then went into the changing room. Both animatronic suits were slumped against the far wall, as they always were unless they were being repaired. Abigail shuddered a bit, dramatically._

 _"_ _I know the kids love them, but…"_

 _"_ _Like I said, they're fucking creepy," Tabitha chuckled. "I can't believe I liked this stuff when I was a kid…nowadays these things are like the stuff of nightmares to me."_

 _"_ _I know, right? Laurel thinks this is some kind of dream job I have here…" Abigail chuckled. "I've only brought her once, she prefers going to the pizzeria William opened on the other side of the city. It's still bare-bones, but…she loves it. I don't have the heart to tell her yet that mommy plays both of the characters here though on different days…" she sighed. "Well, I'll help you get situated, then I'll-"_

 _"_ _Hey, Abby?" they turned, seeing one of their co-workers, John, poking his head in through the door. "You've got a call on the first line…" he said; she could tell by his tone that it wasn't good._

 _She went over to the phone on the wall in the room they were in and hit the appropriate line, only to hear her daughter sobbing on the other end. "Laurel…what's wrong? Oh gawd…" she sighed. "It's okay sweetie, just…stay with Mrs. Johanson until I get home, okay?" she said, before she hung up, turning to Tabitha. She looked absolutely drained, and sighed deeply. "Rick decided to hit the liquor early today I guess…"_

 _"_ _You mean that idiot is already drunk?!" Tabitha said, incredulously._

 _"_ _Yeah…Laurel was smart enough to leave and go to one of our neighbors' homes, but I have to go home and see if I can get him to calm down…she said he's in some kind of rage and breaking things…" she sighed._

 _"_ _W-wait…! You have to show me how to use this stupid thing," Tabitha said, looking at the Fredbear suit a bit nervously._

 _"_ _I'm sorry Tabitha, I really have to go…this can't wait…just, see if you can find William and have him show you, then…cover for me at the parties for a bit. Just tell them Spring Bonnie will be here soon," she sighed, going to her locker and pulling on her coat._

 _Tabitha looked at her, then the suit, then down at the floor. "Yeah…I guess," she shrugged, looking immensely stressed._

 _"_ _I'm really, really sorry…I'll cover dinner tomorrow, okay? I promise, to make it up to you..."_

 _"_ _Yeah…it's a deal…" Tabitha said, looking strained, though she tried her best to hide it; she knew how bad Abigail and Laurel had it._

 _"_ _I'll be back as soon as I possibly can, just hang in there," Abigail said, before she quickly grabbed her purse and left. Thankfully she'd driven today._

 _It was the last time she saw Tabitha alive._

* * *

'I don't know how they somehow made this place creepier than before, but…I've gotta give them credit for managing it…' Abigail thought to herself. "Laurel!" she shouted again, though the only thing she heard was her voice echoing back to her. She sighed a bit, looking stressed.

It was a miracle she'd gotten here at all. The city was still completely buried, and the blizzard was still overhead. It was an unprecedented storm, and though the weathermen kept harping that it was going to eventually pass, thus far they'd only gotten a break here and there. Abigail had tried futilely to reach Laurel on her phone for days upon days, but it kept going to her voicemail. She'd tried calling the police and EMS to have someone come here and check on her, but they were all completely tied up with accidents and emergencies throughout the city, and she hadn't been able to get through because of the high number of calls.

So, she'd pulled up her bootstraps, bundled up, and walked the eleven miles here herself. Laurel lived on the other side of the city, so she couldn't have just walked home herself she knew. It had taken her several hours because of the high snow, though she'd found some paths here and there people had dug to essentially escape their houses.

She'd gotten a scrambled text from Laurel earlier this morning, telling her that she was still trapped inside, but that there was a back entrance into the new part of the entertainment complex that was accessible thanks to construction. She'd sounded panicked, and Abigail had felt the need to at least get here and give her daughter some company until the storm had passed. Abigail still had had to fight her way through a lot of snow and ice, but she was thankful just to be inside and out of the maelstrom.

'Heh…I wonder how much Laurel enjoys this place after being stuck here for six days…' she thought to herself. She hadn't worried too horribly, as there were emergency generators, though she was surprised at how cold it was. There was also a plethora of food for the parties, so she wouldn't starve either. Abigail had done her best to make sure Laurel was self-sufficient as an adult.

She kept calling out for her as she walked down the hallway. Most of the doors were locked. Her voice kept coming closer and closer to where Ruby was now.

Ruby had gone cold. Those few faint memories of her mother she still grasped were all she needed to feel every instinctual spark of her to run to Abigail. But Springtrap caught her, holding her arms tightly.

"Now now…I know as much as you'd like a reunion, I didn't have her come here for a happy ending for you…" he hissed. Ruby managed to suddenly wrench an arm free, and slugged him hard in the face.

"Why?! Why did you bring her here?!" she shouted, struggling to break the hold on her other arm. In spite of there being a small trickle of fluid flowing down his face from the blow, however, he still grinned at her maliciously.

"Because she's the only thing keeping Laurel alive, at this point…" Springtrap said. "I know that she's the most important thing to you…she's your rock. If she's gone, well…"

"No…NO!" Ruby screamed, but Springtrap essentially wrapped his arms around her in a bear hug and lifted her off of the ground. She kicked her feet and thrashed violently, but even Funtime Ruby was still smaller than pretty much all the other animatronics.

Springtrap looked to Funtime Freddy. "That woman's name is Abigail…she wants to take Ruby and Bonnet away from us," he said. Freddy looked frightened, but then settled.

"I won't l-let her take them…!" Freddy exclaimed, aggressively. He paused, gently removing Bon from his right arm and replacing it with his actual hand; he kept it in a compartment in his suit, so he could change them out.

"No, Freddy, please don't…!" Ruby screamed, but Springtrap clamped a hand over her mouth to silence her.

"Ruby is brainwashed…she'll eventually see how fun it is to be like us for good. But we need to get rid of Abigail, first…" Springtrap said gently to Freddy, who nodded.

"No…" Bonnet shivered, looking distressed.

"You stay with Bon-Bon for now," Freddy said to the little one, softly. "When I g-get back, we'll have lots of fun…I promise…" he said, before he turned and stalked off.

Ruby continued to writhe, and Springtrap leered at her. "I told you I would find every way I could to break you, Ruby…is this adequate enough, yet? I'm going to make you look at her and see how miserably she died…maybe I'll even seal her spirit in a suit and keep her here as another plaything…" he spat and chided to her, reveling in her terror.

Ruby was suddenly filled with rage, however. It was terrible enough what he'd done to her, but she had weathered it, survived it. The fact that he'd now pulled her mother into this made her blood boil. But she was also driven by the need to protect her mother as well; no one else would, down here. She suddenly managed to jerk his hand free from over her mouth and bit down hard onto it. Springtrap let out what could have almost been a comical sound of surprise and pain, as he was startled by it, and his grip on her loosened enough to where she was able to elbow his torso, wriggle and break free. She wasted no time, grabbing Bonnet quickly off the floor before she took off.

Springtrap, however, didn't hesitate to take off after her, though not before he paused and used the intercom. "We have a visitor here in the east wing…everyone's welcome to come and greet her," he said into it, his voice echoing throughout the compound.

Ruby ignored it. She just focused on what was ahead of her, on finding her mother. That was all that mattered.

* * *

Abigail looked at the intercom incredulously. "What in the world…?" she said; Laurel was the only one here, wasn't she? "That sounded like…a robot, or something…" she said, noting the mechanical and gravelly tone of the voice. It made her feel wary, but having worked for this company for years off and on, not much surprised her when it came to how they made things work. She continued down the hallway, looking around and into different rooms through windows.

Most of them were dark, but she was surprised at how large this place was. 'A bit of a difference from the diner I worked in…' she thought to herself. She hadn't thought of the diner in years. She had tried not to, ever since that day.

She could still remember getting back to the diner an hour and a half later to find half a dozen police cars and medical vehicles around the place. When she'd learned what had happened to Tabitha, she was inconsolable for what felt like an eternity.

'I blamed myself for years for that…I still do,' she thought to herself. 'If I'd just stayed a moment and reminded her about the spring locks…' she shook her head a bit, trying to get it out of her mind. It was years and years ago now, and there was nothing she could do to change it.

She'd transferred to the pizzeria the next day to help with set-up and upkeep; it hadn't taken long, though, before the job became unsettling. William's behavior continued to grow more and more…manipulative and erratic with time. He'd been friendly enough at the diner, but she noticed something…dark about him, as the business started to expand.

 _And then the children went missing…_

"All right, I need to stop thinking on any of this while I'm here…" she said, trying to steel herself. She hadn't worked for the company in decades now, and yet it felt somehow like she'd never really left.

She paused at one of the windows to fix her hair, pulling her graying brown strands back into a bun since she was a mess from walking here, and took off some of the layers she'd worn, piling them against the wall. As she prepared to move further, however, she suddenly became aware of what sounded like footsteps heading her way.

Very heavy footsteps.

Abigail looked down the hallway, and saw two pale blue eyes glimmering in the darkness. She realized immediately it wasn't a person, but one of the animatronics…albeit, a far newer one. She stepped back a bit, but called out.

"Hello? Who's there?" she said. "Are you messing around with me, Laurel…?"

"Stay right th-there…I have a surprise for you…!" Freddy called out in a frenzied sing-song voice. The hair on the back of Abigail's neck stood on end, and she watched in horror as the animatronic suddenly started to charge right for her at an inhuman speed.

She ran, purposely knocking over stacks of boxes and anything else she could get her hands on to slow it down. They slowed Freddy down a bit, but not enough; he knew where he was going, whereas Abigail was panicked and kept reaching diverting paths and not knowing where to go. Her pauses ended up costing her vital time to escape, and he eventually caught up with her, grabbing her right arm to stop her before he whirled her around, then grabbing her neck with his left hand and pinning her high up against the wall violently.

Abigail gasped out, having had the wind knocked out of her, then struggled, trying to pry his hand free from her neck, but she couldn't even so much as shift his servos slightly. She struggled to breathe, gasping as he slowly crushed in against her windpipe. Freddy stared up at her remorselessly.

"I won't l-let you take Bonnet and R-Ruby away from me…!" he shouted, before he started to laugh a bit maniacally. "Springtrap s-said I should make you suffer…it's g-gonna be a lot of fun for me…but n-not for you!"

"Ruby…Springtrap…? What are you talking about?" Abigail strained to say.

"You c-can't lie to me…!" Freddy said, once again in his bouncy, insane tone of voice. "I know what you're here to do, but I won't l-let you…maybe if you're l-lucky, Springtrap will make you into one of us, and then you can have all k-kinds of fun with m-me…" he chimed ominously.

He suddenly grabbed her left arm with his right hand and started twisting it painfully. Abigail let out a strangled sound of pain as she could feel her shoulder popping out of place first, and then her elbow joint starting to cede to the pressure. Between the pain and his tightening hold on her throat, Abigail started to black out.

"Calm down and go to sleep, Freddy…" Bonnet's soothing voice suddenly rang out behind him. He actually slowed a bit, seeming to be lulled oddly by her voice.

"Do it again, Bonnet…" Ruby whispered to her frantically.

"No one's taking us away, silly…just calm down and go to your stage…" Bonnet said. Freddy's grip lessened a bit more, and Abigail was able to loosen herself up to get freed from his grasp, gasping for air.

Ruby suddenly lunged out and grabbed her by her uninjured arm and pulled her along. "There's no time to explain, just follow me…! I have to take you somewhere safe!" she said back to her. Abigail just looked at her in horror, but compared to Freddy, Ruby definitely seemed like the safer option for her.

Freddy seemed to snap out of his stupor fairly quickly and let out a crazed laugh before he started chasing him. His already limited grasp on reality seemed to be slipping, Ruby noticed; she wasn't sure he wouldn't just tear them all apart if he did manage to catch them.

Ruby didn't have a good sense of direction, but she knew her best bet at this point was to find a room where they could barricade themselves in until she could figure out a way to get her mother back up to the surface level once again. Her best bet seemed to be the room she'd gotten her new body in, since there was stuff strewn all over the place.

She suddenly felt a harsh tug back, however, and saw that her mother had dug her feet into the floors, looking at her with a look of panic and confusion. "What is going on here?! Where are you taking me?! Who even are you?!" she shouted, her voice cracking as she felt pain spread from her dislocated shoulder.

Ruby looked back and forth frantically; she could hear Freddy pursuing them still, though he seemed to have wandered away from the path she'd taken. She looked at Abigail desperately. "Mom…it's me…"

Abigail looked at her with a mix of disbelief and disgust. "What are you talking about…?! You're…you're a machine, an animatronic…!" she shouted.

Ruby felt inwardly hurt, but she couldn't blame her; she had to sound like some crazed trinket right now to Abigail. "Mom…it is me…Laurel…" she said, her voice softening.

Abigail looked at her skeptically and in fear for another moment, but then her expression started to soften. Abigail wasn't one to take any bullshit, but she knew her daughter better than anyone else. "Laurel…?" she said; looking utterly terrified now. "What…but…but how…?" she sputtered a bit.

"It's…a really…really, long story, mom…" she replied, but she didn't have much time to get into it before Freddy suddenly came barreling down the end of the hallway after them.

"I see you th-there hiding in the d-dark…!" he shouted; his static only made his voice far more ominous. Ruby essentially pulled a Rudy quickly and snapped her mother up and over her shoulder, sprinting off with her.

The new body at least meant she could move about a lot more freely; her movements were far more human-like and she was free from that crippling pain. She made her way towards where she'd come from, hoping that Springtrap had left.

The good news was, he wasn't in that room any longer; the bad news was, Springtrap was in the corridor ahead of them, blocking her progress forward, along with Fredbear.

"Oh crap…" Ruby spat under her breath; this meant she was boxed in as Freddy came along from the rear.

"Tsk tsk tsk…" Springtrap said, giving her a mocking look of disapproval. "You just can't make things easy, can you, Ruby?"

Ruby lowered her mother down as she looked for another way they could escape through frantically. There were doors around them, but she had no idea where many of them led.

Fredbear growled at them angrily, but Abigail suddenly became transfixed on the two of them, stepping back a bit. Ruby noticed her reaction and shot her a quizzical look.

"Fredbear…? And Spring Bonnie…?" she said; both of them immediately seemed to freeze.

Ruby had no idea what was going on; it was like the temperature dropped another twenty degrees in an instant. "Mom…what's…what's wrong…? How do you…?"

 ** _In truth, I think that my being was cursed from the beginning, though…even before William, I can remember the few people that ever wore me as a skin._**

 _"_ _Great…William says I have to play Spring Bonnie again…that's the fifth time this week," Abby sighed._

 _"_ _Heh, better you than me…" Tabitha smirked at her._

Springtrap suddenly grinned maliciously from about ear to ear. "I remember you… _Abigail..._ "

Fredbear looked a bit more stunned a bit longer, but then his expression suddenly flooded with an odd…rage, though it seemed subdued compared to the anger he'd shown Ruby during her time here. They could hear Funtime Freddy staggering towards them.

"Just think of all the f-fun ways I can m-make you bleed…!" he called out; his voice was breaking now with hysteria.

"Mom, we have to go…" Ruby said, stating the absolute obvious. She suddenly grabbed her hand again and pulled her through one of the doors, praying it led somewhere beneficial to them.

It was a smaller room, but she thanked her lucky stars it had storage and also seemed to have a security door because there were 'sensitive materials' in there. She activated it immediately, and the gate slammed shut. She knew Springtrap had the codes into the doors, however, so she swiftly did a manual override on it…by driving her fist through the activation box. She blinked and cringed a bit at her newfound strength; she'd only meant to damage it a bit. These new animatronics were heartier than she realized.

Immediately there was a feral pounding on the door. "You can't hide in there forever!" Fredbear shouted at them, though he sounded oddly…restrained, she noticed.

"C-come on out…w-we'll have all kinds of fun out here…" Funtime Freddy added, his voice crackling badly still.

Springtrap's voice was the only one that was calm, and though she could barely hear him, it was by far the most frightening. "I'll find a way in there, dear Ruby…even in spite of your violent behavior…" he purred to her. "After all...it's been a long time since Fredbear and I have seen our old...friend..." Ruby winced at that, but didn't dignify him with a response of any kind.

After a few moments, it became quiet, and she realized that they'd all left. She let out a sigh of relief and turned, but Abigail was positioned at the back of the room, looking around.

"Unfortunately, I can see why they're pretty smug…there's no way out of this room…" she said. Ruby wilted a bit; she hadn't realized it was a dead-end, or she'd have taken more time before destroying their only way out of here.

Abigail still looked at her cryptically as she approached, and Ruby shifted a bit back and forth on her feet. She had to constantly keep from standing en pointe, as that seemed to be the default for this model. Abigail though took a moment to just look at her as she carefully adjusted Bonnet in her arms and looked back at her mother.

"Laurel…if that really is you, then you should be able to explain everything that's going on…" Abigail said; she let out a huge sigh, and sat down onto one of the storage bins in the room.

"It's going to be a long, long story…and maybe one that you can fill in some details on…" Ruby started, softly. Bonnet nestled in against her and started to recharge a bit, glad they were now safe.

"Me? How can I fill in the gaps of whatever insanity has happened here…?" Abigail said, trying not to move her injured arm. Ruby gently tucked Bonnet into an old tarp for warmth, then set about making her mother a sling.

"Well…it all goes back to a place called Fredbear's Family Diner…"


	12. Our Shallowest Sympathies

**Author's Note:** Strong violence warning and also mention of sexual assault in this chapter, please be wary of this when you continue reading. I'm not going to be too graphic with the gory moments in this story, but they are going to happen, so make sure you're aware of them! I want to make sure no one reads anything that's going to upset them!

* * *

Hours went by as Ruby recounted to Abigail everything that had happened from the beginning. Abigail had told her not to spare any detail, so she hadn't. Abigail clasped her face a bit at the end. "Poor Tom…and we don't have any way to call the police…" Abigail murmured. So much snow had fallen since then she hadn't even seen his truck.  
"We can't even do that, mom…they're gonna think we're nuts, not to mention the entire city's in a state of emergency right now…there's no one to help…"

Abigail sighed shakily. "We have to find a way out of here…and a way to get you back into your original body…" she said. "I still…don't understand how you could somehow…become one of these…animatronics though…"

"I'd be lying if I said I had any idea either…" Ruby sighed. "In all honesty…even though I know you're my mom…a lot of my memories are vanishing…" she sighed, shuddering a bit. "Springtrap is the mastermind behind all of this…he…he doesn't ever intend to let me go…"

"Well, he can try all he wants…in fact, he can kill me before I let him keep you like this, down here…" Abigail said, trailing off.

"Don't talk like that mom, my only concern right now is getting you out of here. I can worry about myself."  
"You're my daughter, of course I'm going to talk like that! And…if everything you've told me is true…if it all happened this way, then…it's my fault…that a lot of this occurred…" Abigail said, hanging her head.

"You mean because of Tabitha…? But mom, you had no way of knowing that would happen…" Ruby said; she knelt at her mother's side, and consoled her a bit. She was stunned to see her crying a bit.

"No…it is my fault. I knew she was nervous about using the Fredbear suit. She'd only used it once before…but I was worried about your idiot father ruining a few more of our useless things. You were already safe…I should have stayed…" she sighed. "I almost don't…blame Fredbear himself…if he feels the kind of stress and anger that Tabby did, at the end of her life…then who can blame him? Her life was in tatters at the time. I did my best to be there for her, but with everything going on at home…"

"Mom, listen…it's not your fault. I know you did everything you could to help her, but…there was a lot going on for you too. You shouldn't dismiss all of that…"

"It's no different than what you're talking about doing right now, Laurel…thinking about helping all these…machines…" she said.

"They're not just machines, mom…they're sentient. They think and feel and…have dreams like we do. It's just…a lot of them have been manipulated, or just…gave up. This place…it's just so suffocating. There wasn't any way for them to cope with what they are. I'm barely coping with it right now…" she admitted. "But I have to try. I can't just leave them here like this. Even if I could escape…what's to stop Springtrap from hurting them? Or from luring another young woman down here? Not all of them have crazy mothers to come and bail them out," she half-smirked.

"I suppose that's true…" Abigail said after a moment. She couldn't help but chuckle a bit, sadly. "You always loved these places…and even back then, I knew something awful was happening here…I think in the back of my mind I always suspected William. He was just too…sickeningly sweet, I guess is the way I used to think of it. Like he was always trying to charm people right before he wrapped a piano wire around their neck…"

"Kinky…" Ruby couldn't help herself, and giggled a bit at her mother's look. "Sorry…I couldn't help it…"  
"You shouldn't joke on that, dear…it sounds like Springtrap has the same attitude about women that William did if even half of what you said is everything he did to you…" she looked sad. "William was a terrible womanizer…I never thought him capable of rape, but…I'd be lying if I said it surprised me…" Abigail sighed. "There was so much that happened there that I was oblivious to…it was like there was always a dark cloud over that place. I suppose now I have my answer why that was. What was it you wanted me to fill in though?"  
"That night…when you came home from work all flustered…what event caused that?" Ruby asked. "Was it Tabitha? I only remember you coming home crying now, it's…it's really faded…but, I kept having nightmares about it, after I became Ruby…"

"No, actually…that was later on. I hid Tabitha's death as best as I could, because of guilt…and because at the end of the day, it was a tragic accident. There was nothing I could do…" she sighed. "The day I came home, though…that was…that was when the remains of the children were found in the suits…"

Ruby wretched, wanting to vomit, even though that was a bit of a fruitless venture as an animatronic. "Oh gawd…he actually did put them in there…?"

"At the time William wasn't even a suspect, if you can believe it…I guess he covered his tracks very well…" Abigail said. "I'd always thought something was wrong…he'd tell us to just hose them down when they started to…smell…but it never seemed to help. Then one day one of the new workers got curious and opened one up…and that was the end of it…"

"I'm really…glad you didn't tell me now…why it was closing…" Ruby said, sitting down beside her; she'd been pacing a bit back and forth as they'd talked.

"I tried looking at it that their families finally had some closure…but then I heard that the animatronics were being reused in spite of that horrific discovery; even if the place was closing down, William was arrogant and knew he could simply do it all again once enough time had passed, from what I can gather now. That's when I quit…I knew it wasn't finished completely, that they'd rebrand themselves and distance the company from the murders, but…that place attracted more evil people than just William Afton, I know that much…"

"It's just so…weird to me. This place was supposed to be where there's a lot of happiness and joy…why do people like him flock here? I just…don't understand…" Ruby said, holding her face in her hands a moment.

"Because of vulnerability…" Abigail replied, standing, trying to stretch her legs though she winced as she felt a small throb of pain in her shoulder. "Even the diner had its share of creeps and pervs when I worked there decades ago…ironic that William gave us training on how to spot and remove them back then…"

"Takes one to know one, I guess…" Ruby said, though her voice trailed off.

Abigail went over to the now busted security box next to the door; though Ruby had driven her fist into it to cause an emergency shutdown, she could still see what parts of it were intact. "I think it won't be hard to rig this to let us out…the problem is knowing when the best opportunity would be."

Ruby nodded, sighing a bit as she contemplated it. It seemed like their best bet was to listen and see if there was a time where they could slip out undetected. It seemed highly unlikely though that Springtrap wouldn't have at least one of them guarding the area outside the room at all times though; no doubt he knew that they weren't going to just sit here forever.

As they were silent, thinking on what to do, all three of them were startled when one of the containers in the room suddenly jostled and landed with a small thud. Bonnet squeaked with fear and latched onto one of Ruby's legs as the container continued to stir, and they suddenly heard a small voice come out from it. "Is someone there?" it asked; it sounded similar to Bon's and Bonnet's small voices, though a bit deeper and a pinch rougher. "Please, let me out of here!"

Ruby approached it gingerly; she was nervous to engage any other animatronics down here at this point, given that Springtrap had turned all but Bonnet against her. But the voice sounded genuine and terrified, so she knelt down and looked at the container. It was sealed shut with a padlock, which she took into her hand…and snapped off with a relatively strong pull. She still couldn't get over how strong she was in this body; not that it did a whole lot of good against the others.

The container almost looked empty, but then she spotted a pair of tiny yellow optics looking up at her. The little one stood up from the corner of the container, and Ruby was taken aback. The animatronic looked similar to Bonnet, but less bulky…and also bearing a striking resemblance to Springtrap, with his yellow hue and similar features.

"Thanks for letting me out of th-there…" the small animatronic said, walking to the edge of the container and hoisting himself out. Bonnet looked relieved, however, and almost tackled him as she suddenly flung herself into him.

"Plushtrap! Bon and I were wondering where you were!" she said, sounding relieved. Her reaction made Ruby less anxious, since Bonnet was absolutely terrified of Springtrap.

Plushtrap looked equally happy to see her and hugged her tight. "It's so good to see you again too! I'm sorry…he locked me in there because he said I was being too annoying…" he added, a bit sadly.

"You mean Springtrap…?" Bonnet asked.

"Yeah, Springtrap…" Plushtrap replied, sounding agitated as he pulled away from her. "They remodeled me to look more like how he looks now, and the second we get here he locks me away, the massive jerk…"

"You don't know the half of it…" Ruby murmured, though he heard her and giggled a bit.

"Well, thanks for letting me out, at least…I've been in there for long enough now that even hearing you talk out here I thought I was just imagining it…" he said, a bit sheepishly.

"It's no trouble…we're trying to get away from him and the others right now, trying to think of a way to get to the surface…" Ruby explained. "But…we're sort of trapped in here right now. I had to destroy the security console into this room so they couldn't follow us, but…now there's no way out, because even if I can get it fixed, we won't know if someone's waiting there for us…" she trailed off. Saying it out loud made her feel like a failure, and she wilted a bit.

Abigail frowned, but then started to look around the room a bit more. It was then that her eyes fell onto a narrow, slotted vent a few feet above the door that allowed air flow from the corridor they'd escaped from.

"Laurel…" she said, pointing up to it. "We might have a way to see what's going on outside of this room. If we can find a way to hoist one or both of the little ones up there, they can look out the other side and see who's around."

Ruby looked up at it; it seemed like the most viable option. She nodded. "Why don't you focus on seeing if you can get the security box working again, and I'll start quietly stacking boxes so we can lift them up there…do you two think you'll be okay up there?"  
"I'll be fine," Plushtrap nodded. "I want to get out of here too…after what he did to me and what he's been doing down here, I don't wanna stay around him…"

"I'll be okay too," Bonnet said softly.

They got to work, though they took their time so as to not bring attention to what they were doing. Abigail donned a protective glove that was in the room on her usable hand and went to work, figuring out which wires needed to reconnect to one another for the override to be cancelled. It wasn't too difficult thanks to the color coding that was inside of it, but painstaking since there were so many. Ruby spent her time gently stacking boxes and containers that were in the room against the wall next to the doorway on the side opposite her mother, with Plushtrap and Bonnet cutely trying to help by both laboring to move a single item alongside one another. Ruby was still slightly wary of their new ally, but she chalked it up to his resemblance to her tormentor.

After some time, they had a viable 'tower' to climb. While Abigail put the finishing touches on the console, Ruby climbed up with the two little ones on her back, and went to the vent. She used a screwdriver they'd found in the room to undo the screws holding the vent in place, and slowly took it off, setting it aside. The opening was just barely large enough for the two small animatronics to squeeze into. Plushtrap went first, grunting slightly as he tried his best to not make too much noise. He crouched and teetered forward, finding the other side that looked out into the corridor.

"What do you see, Plushtrap?" Ruby asked him.

"It looks like Funtime Freddy's just outside the door…he's pacing a lot…" Plushtrap said, wincing a bit. "He looks really mad…"

"Let's just say that's how they're all feeling right about now…do you see anyone else…?" Ruby inquired in a whisper.

"Uh-uh…wait, actually…I hear like…faint music or something coming from the right, a little ways away…it sounds like a music box, or something…"

"That's Ballora…so it's at least those two then, though maybe she's patrolling near one of the side rooms because they think we might try to exit that way…if we can get out of here, we'll head to the left…"

"What we need to do is find the maintenance lift…" Abigail said quietly. Ruby looked down at her. "I passed it when I came into this place, though I used the stairs to get down here because I wasn't sure if there was power. I might be able to find my way back to it, but it's so winding through here…we might have to find a way to override it, since Springtrap has a hold over everything here, but it would get us back up to the ground floor again…"  
Ruby nodded; it sounded like the best course of action they had right about now. But first they had to find a way to get Freddy away from the door, somehow. Ruby suddenly perked up a bit, being struck by an idea.

"Bonnet…is there anyway you could crawl slightly towards the right, and do what you can to throw your voice? If Freddy hears you, he'll follow where he thinks you are…it would give us the moment we need to slip out of here…" she said. Bonnet contemplated this a moment, then nodded.

"Uh huh, Bon and I were programmed to be able to throw our voices so we could play little tricks on the kids," she said smally.

Ruby nodded. "Once you do that, jump down out of there…I'll catch you and we'll make tracks, okay?" she said. Plushtrap wiggled his way out of the vent and managed to land squarely in Ruby's arms, before she then hoisted Bonnet up into the vent carefully. "Don't go far at all, just throw your voice as far as you can when I give the signal…" Ruby whispered to her.

It only took Abigail another moment or two before she managed to get all of the wires reconnected, aside from the final one that would open the door once they were tied together. Ruby looked up towards the vents. "All right Bonnet…lure him away…" she said quietly.

Bonnet mustered what she could to throw her voice down the narrow confines of the ventilation shaft, but did her best. "Oh Freddy! I'm down here, come and play with me!" she said, making her voice as distant and playful as possible.

Almost immediately they heard Funtime Freddy spring out of his monotonous march near the door. "Bonnet?! Is th-that you?" he called out, sounding elated.

"I think I heard her too!" Bon said smally to his side.

"I'm sorry I ran away, Freddy…I'm stuck down here in the vents. Can you come and find me?" Bonnet's small voice called back down to him from the other end of the corridor. It didn't take any more than that for him to bound down that way.

Abigail immediately reconnected the last two wires that allowed the door to open once he was down at the other end, and Bonnet leapt down to Ruby as she scooped up Plushtrap as well, and they took off going the opposite way.

"You t-tricked me!" they suddenly heard Funtime Freddy shriek from the other end of the corridor; he heard their pounding footsteps as they took off in the opposite direction. "This isn't the t-time for games!" He suddenly took off after them rapidly.

Ruby knew they didn't have much time; the others were likely nearby. They had such a small window of opportunity to try and find a way out of this madhouse. She scanned the hallways as they found their way to one of the access corridors that ran between two of the larger auditoriums. Her optics focused on one of the signs up near the ceiling that helped point the way, marked "Elevators".

"Mom, this way!" she shouted, grabbing Abigail's unwounded arm and leading her swiftly to the right; there were three elevators at the end of the hallway. When they reached them, however, she realized all three were locked and cursed.

"I should have guessed he'd make sure they wouldn't run…" she hissed a bit.

"The maintenance lift has to be part of the old structure, it isn't computerized, it's an old lift system, like the one they had at the diner…" Abigail said. "We have to find that one instead…he can't block that one from reaching us."

They could hear Funtime Freddy approaching them and went around the corner, away from the opening where the elevators were. They could hear him stalking around. "You c-can't hide forever…the oth-others and I will find you…!" he called out. "I d-don't want to hurt you, R-Ruby…" he added; it made her feel both anguished and frightened. "J-just give us that human and w-we'll forgive you…I promise…!"

Ruby waited until his voice sounded a bit more distant, and then nodded to her mother, signaling that they start moving along slowly. Funtime Freddy seemed to be listening for them, so they kept their footsteps as quiet as possible. Ruby's sensitive auditory receptors could pick up other movements, though she was thankful they didn't seem nearby. At least, not at first; as they moved away from the auditoriums and the main elevator hub, she could hear what sounded at first like thunder rumbling through the building. It was when she realized that it was continuous that it finally clicked it was an animatronic stalking them…a very large animatronic.

It suddenly stopped when they froze down one last long, empty corridor. She could see the old, ragged maintenance lift there at the end of the second hallway at the crossroads, waiting for them like a beacon. It wasn't on their floor, but it was operational. She knew that the animatronics couldn't follow them up on these; there were strict weight limits on them. She knew that her body was probably just light enough with Bonnet, Plushtrap and her mother with her to get them back upstairs; probably the one time she was grateful she was much smaller than the others.

When she glimpsed down the corridor they were currently on, right at the intersection, however, she could see two yellow optics staring at them from up near the ceiling. Abigail was frozen, staring at him.

"It's Fredbear…" she whispered. "He's been following us…"

"Why didn't you tell me?!" Ruby whispered back. He'd been what she was hearing, though she hadn't realized he was this close.

"I…I don't know…" Abigail barely got out.

"It's been a long time, Abby…" Ruby shuddered at how deep and foreboding Fredbear's voice was; he had rarely said anything to her, but it had sent fear throughout her that almost rivaled the eerie, unsettled feeling that Springtrap gave her. "You're…one of the few people I remember…"

"Fredbear…I…I don't know how much of Tabitha is still inside of you, now, but…" Abigail started; Ruby, however, was utterly shocked when her mother actually broke away from her side and started to approach him.

"Mom, what the hell are you doing?!" she half whispered, half hissed, her voice shuddering with fear. Abigail shot her a look that practically screamed at her to get to the elevator while Fredbear was distracted. For his size, he could move so incredibly fast; if he charged them now, all four of them were caught. Her mother was trying to keep him too preoccupied to get her.

"Nothing of her…is left…" Fredbear said. "Nothing…except for a few memories…distant ones. But a lot of them…are of you…" he added; his eyes seemed to shine brighter when he said this.

"For what it's worth…if she died…hating me…I don't blame her…what happened to her…what made you…it was my fault…" Abigail said; Ruby was struck by the sadness in her mother's voice. She had only spoken about Tabitha once in a while; she now realized just how much it pained her to think about what happened.

Oddly enough, however, Fredbear shook his head a bit heavily, the joints and gears making some rigid sounds with the movement. "No…it isn't hate…you were the one person she didn't hate…" he replied. "The distant memories…are of you…of brief…happiness…" his voice actually dropped; usually he sounded so enraged, on the verge of psychosis. At this moment, however, Ruby could hear what sounded like true…sentiment in his tone. A deep, crippling sadness, but also a twinge of genuine contentment.

"I know…she had a hard life…her family was terrible to her…her friends just encouraged her to drink and smoke her problems away…I did…everything I could to try and give her something else besides all of that..." Abigail said; she glimpsed Ruby, giving her another desperate look , pleading with her to escape.

"I can't leave you…" Ruby choked out, inaudible.

Abigail frowned. "It's all right…" she mouthed to her. "One way or another…we're getting through this, you and I. Just like always…" she whispered back to her; Ruby could just barely make it out. Every step backwards, slowly, felt like a terrible betrayal to her mother, but she crept back towards the lift. She knew if she moved fast, it would likely jar Fredbear out of whatever lull he was in.

"They're faint…but I remember bits of that…fleeting moments of…peace…" Fredbear said. By this point, Abigail had ventured to where she was in arm's reach of him. She gently reached out with her unwounded arm, and somewhat shakily touched his abdomen because of his height. He didn't move at all.

"I'm still…sorry…that you've experienced so much of the anguish that Tabitha did…she didn't deserve any of that, and neither do you…" Abigail said, softly, and she meant it. "I never…knew that you had the capacity to feel and see all of this, back then…"

Fredbear looked almost contemplative, but suddenly reached up and very gently rested his massive hand over hers, holding it almost…tenderly.

"If you're done with the tearful reunion, Fredbear…you might want to draw attention to the fact that our other little friends are escaping…" Springtrap hissed at him suddenly from the other end of the corridor, where Ruby and the others had come from. Ruby was currently at the maintenance lift, pressing the call button frantically. The lift creaked to life and slowly grinded down towards them.

Fredbear suddenly growled a bit, and grabbed Abigail's hand harshly, though he didn't move to wound her further and instead dragged her along as both he and Springtrap approached the lift, blokcing Ruby and her 'wards' from escaping down another route. Ruby let out a sound of apprehension and pressed back against the doors, holding Bonnet and Plushtrap against her chest. Bonnet was shaking and covering her face, while Plushtrap hissed a bit at them as they approached.

"Ah, you found the little snot…" Springtrap noted as he approached, looking at Plushtrap. "Did you have fun calling that small shipping crate home, Plushtrap?" Plushtrap just growled at him almost ferally.

Ruby felt her nonexistent stomach sink, but suddenly heard the ding of the lift behind her. She essentially wedged herself between the doors as they opened and quickly hit the close door button once she was inside. Springtrap sneered a bit, but paused; she had half expected him to come aboard and rip her off of it. Instead, however, he simply leaned into the doors, using his weight to keep them from closing. For a second, she was utterly confused why he wasn't attacking them.

"Clever…if one of us steps into here, we'll all plummet into the depths of the earth…" he noted. So that was why he wasn't trying to get her; he knew they'd far exceed the weight capacity. The lift was shuddering even with just her inside of it, she noticed. "But that's quite all right…after all, we have quite the reason for your return down here…and really, I'm…excited to see how your friends are going to react to that new form of yours," he said, giving her an awful grin. Ruby shuddered against the far back, but he released the doors, and they slowly started to close.

"Be seeing you, soon, Ruby…do give them my regards…" Springtrap said smoothly, before the doors closed shut.

The last thing Ruby saw, however, was one last fearful glimpse of her mother as Fredbear turned and dragged her away down the corridor.

* * *

 _Abby didn't know how to approach the situation well; she and Tabitha often had little filter when it came to talking about the nitty gritty aspects of their lives, but lately, the younger woman had been a bit…quieter than normal. She'd always had the normal complaints about work, but there was something about her demeanor that had made her seemed more…deadened, than usual._

 _She didn't necessarily enjoy inviting her out for drinks, as she had been trying her best to wean Tabby off of using alcohol as self-medication for her mental problems, but it was sometimes the only way to coax her out of the house. Right now, she was three shots of whiskey deep into her spiral, and Abby could see the walls around her starting to crack._

 _"_ _Tabby…you know if something bad is going on…you can tell me, right? I'll do everything I can to help you," Abby said; she rested her hand on Tabby's, trying to give her some consolation. She felt Tabby release what sounded like a half-sob, muffled by her already drunken state. Abby saw tears welling up in her eyes and couldn't help putting an arm around her to give her comfort, holding her close so she could speak without drawing attention to them. They were sitting in a small booth at a tiny dive bar. No one could have cared less about them at the moment._

 _"_ _Abby…I…I'm…" Tabby managed to get out; she sounded stressed, terrified, and out of it. She finally looked at her through her tears as they started to run down her cheeks, smearing her mascara. "I'm pregnant…"_

 _Abby froze, looking at her in stunned silence a moment. "Tabby…" she started, trying to find the words. "What happened? Did your protection break? Do you know who the father is?" she asked softly, staying non-judgmental. Tabitha was known to be a bit wild with men, since she was young, took care of herself and wanted to do anything but go home to her parents. Abby had actually given her condoms on a few occasions with a somewhat motherly lecture about being safe._

 _"_ _It wasn't…I…I didn't…" Tabby replied; she was struggling to speak. Abigail at first thought she was just terrified of the pregnancy, but there was something else there. There was a strange kind of horror behind her voice. Something was desperately wrong._

 _"_ _Tabby…" Abby finally struggled to get out. "Were…were you raped…?"_

 _Tabby just shuddered and clasped her hands over her face, crumpling down into her seat. That was all the answer Abby needed._

 _"_ _Oh god…when did it happen? Have you called the police…?" she said._

 _"_ _I can't tell the police…he said…he said he'll kill me…" Tabby replied, shuddering. "And I can't avoid him…he'll know…he'll know I'm trying to stay away from him…"_

 _Her voice sounded so terrified, almost delusional with fear._

 _"_ _What do you mean…? Was it someone we know…?" Tabby was silent. Abby was at a loss; Rick had been abusive to her so much over the years that trying to think of what to tell her was difficult. She felt like she had no place to give her any advice._

 _Tabby seemed to steel herself after a moment, however, taking a deep breath and wiping her tears away. Abby was struck at how cold, but also determined, she seemed to be. She'd obviously had to dig deep inside herself to find it. "It is someone we know, I think…and…I'm going to keep it…" she said, quietly. "Which means…I have to start getting off of this shit…" she said, gently pushing the whiskey glass away with the back of her hand._

 _Abby was silent, looking for the right words, but Tabby just looked at her sadly. "The kid has nothing to do with what happened…I never wanted to be a mom, you know…I was never raised to have any kind of skills to be one, but…seeing you and Laurel makes me hope maybe it'll be a little girl…maybe I can get some pointers from you…" she said; she hiccuped a bit, drunkenly, and slumped back. "I gotta start…weaning off of the smokes and booze though, right? And see a doctor…that'd probably be a good idea…"_

 _"_ _Tabby…that's obviously your choice, and I'll do everything I can to help you through all of that, anything I can do…" Abby said, touching her arm. "But whomever did this…we have to tell the police…"_

 _"_ _I can't…" Tabby said, quietly; she leaned forward. "It only happened like…maybe two, two and a half months ago. I took a test cause my cycle hadn't come in a while…"_

 _"_ _Please…tell me who it was…if you can't bring yourself to turn them in, then I will…"_

 _"_ _I can't…" Tabby choked out, coughing a bit._

 _"_ _Was it someone we work with at the diner…?"_

 _Tabby was silent._

 _"_ _I'm not entirely sure who it was…" she admitted after a moment. "Someone put something…in my soda, at work. I passed out near the end of our shift…he did it, when we weren't working together…" Abby felt a cold shiver down her spine. That had been intentional, as Abby would have realized something was wrong, since they were always working together. "I just remember…going to the bathroom, and blacking out…and then just flashes…but he had me…pinned down on my stomach…and I couldn't move…I was too scared…"_

 _"_ _You don't have to tell me anymore about it…" Abby said, hearing her voice shake. She knew it had to be unbearable to recount it. "We should still tell the police…"_

 _"_ _I could hear him whispering to me…" Tabby continued after a moment; Abby didn't feel it was right to try and silence her, hoping that maybe speaking about it would help give her some relief from her anguish. "He said…that I was damaged…that with the way I acted, no one would believe me…" she said; her tone had such a dead feel to it, now. "And that if I told anyone…he'd kill me, and no one would ever find him…and he…" her voice broke a bit._

 _"_ _Please, Tabby…you don't have to go on if it hurts too much…" Abby said; she was starting to tear up herself, it was so painful. But what she heard next made her lock up._

 _"_ _He said he'd hurt you and Laurel if I said anything…"_

 _Abigail felt like she couldn't breathe, but the terror she felt was also mingled with a raw, sheer anger that coursed through her. "Then I have to do something, anything…" she said. "If he knows about me and Laurel…" she broke off._

 _"_ _I don't know who it was, Abby…he whispered, I couldn't tell…whatever drug he slipped me royally fucked with my head...I almost thought it was a nightmare, even after it was over...until...until I saw the bruising..." she rested her head down on the table._

 _"_ _Do you at least have a suspicion…of who it could have been…?" Abby asked. "Was it one of the temps? George or John?"_

 _"_ _No…it didn't sound like them…"_

 _Abby mulled her brain, trying to think. "Matt, or Steve…? You know, the two stock boys that run the backroom?"_

 _Tabby shook her head a bit. "Maybe, but it didn't…sound like them, but…it was hard to know…"_

 _Abby sighed and contemplated, naming off the other few people she could think of. "Randy…Owen…Jake…"_

 _"_ _None of those three were on that day…" Tabby said, shuddering a bit. "Can we…can we talk about something…something else…? Please…?" she asked her, pleadingly. "I…I trust you the most, Abby. That's why I told you…and I'm gonna…gonna need your help, getting through this…but I don't want to think about it. I don't…I can't go to the police…I'm too afraid…he'll know..."_

 _Abby respected her choice, and went quiet, instead just drawing her friend into an embrace and letting her cry until she had gotten as much pain out as she could._

 _But deep down, she had always suspected who it was. She'd had only one man left to name who was there every day, and was the one who made their schedules._

 _But, she'd never gotten the chance to try and find out, and get her justice or help. Tabby had died three days later, along with her unborn child._

* * *

Abigail could only see the muted gray of the floor as Fredbear dragged her along; she eventually lost her footing and stumbled, hard, twisting her ankle a bit as she fell. He actually let go of her as she crumpled a bit against the wall, wincing at the pain. Between that and her shoulder, she was essentially a hot mess now.

Springtrap grunted a bit ahead of them. "Don't let her fall behind…we wouldn't want her to miss out on what we have planned for her, would we…?"

"And what exactly is that?" Abigail said. "You know I can't fight you…what's the point in not telling me?" she asked, sternly.

"Well, I can certainly see where Laurel gets that spitfire attitude of hers from…" Springtrap replied, giving her a calm, but eerie, smile. "It's been so many years, Abigail...if only I'd known that you were Laurel's mother. I'd have sent that urgent little S.O.S. text to you _much_ sooner had I realized…"

Abigail grit her teeth; she'd guessed by this point that he'd been the one to send it to lure her here, all things considered. Laurel hadn't had her phone since almost the beginning of all of this. "I wish I could say it's nice to see you again, Spring Bonnie…"

"Heh…I haven't heard that name in so many years now…" Springtrap said. "It's almost weird hearing you call me that. Brings back some strange nostalgia…"

"You know, I always found you to be pretty creepy then…at least now I know my suspicions were warranted…" Abigail said. She reached up and removed her now twisted and tattered splint, as it was doing little to hold her injured arm in place anymore, instead favoring carrying it with her other arm.

Springtrap chuckled darkly. "Odd how that is, isn't it? You and Tabitha used to joke how much you hated that job…not that I blame either of you, really. Had to be awful working somewhere where the two dangerous spring-lock suits you had to wear weren't the only dangerous things around, hmm?"

Abigail recoiled a bit, not looking at him. "I'm just glad _he's_ dead…" she barely even whispered it. "It's just a shame…that _you_ were left behind…"

"So sorry to disappoint you, dear…" Springtrap said, coyly, smoothing a servo over her cheek. She recoiled more and glared at him. "But don't fret too much…especially about those injuries. You won't have to deal with them, soon…"

"What do you mean…?" Abigail asked. Springtrap, however, just grinned and turned to Fredbear. "She's not in any condition to walk. Just carry her the rest of the way. I'll be there shortly with my…surprise, for our guest," he said. "The others should have found it, already…" He turned smoothly and left down the corridor.

Fredbear looked at her; his gaze was harder now, but Abigail could see it softening, even if it was faint. Fredbear approached her somewhat ominously, but to her surprise, picked her up rather gently, carrying her bride-style. He actively avoided her wounded arm by picking her up so her right side was leaning in against him, and held her injured leg by the knee to avoid hitting her ankle.

"Thank you…" she said, softly. The kindness was appreciated, no matter what was to come.

Fredbear was silent, but carried her with an unexpected tenderness. The hallways were quiet, and Abigail felt oddly…nostalgic, herself. It reminded her a bit of walking through the old coolers and backrooms of the diner. They'd been made up of concrete blocks, and went down into a deep, almost endless basement. She and Tabby had joked that it was haunted, and had hated going down there.

Abigail finally spoke, after what felt like forever, though she knew it had only been a few moments of crushing silence. "They're going to do the same thing to me…aren't they? That they did to Laurel…except, I won't…I won't have anything to return to, will I?" she said; she sounded afraid, but also resolved.

Fredbear was quiet. "Yes…they are…there's one suit left that can do it that's here…"

Abigail shuddered a bit, wincing with pain as the jolt of fear rattled her wounds. "It doesn't…have to be this way, Fredbear…I…I've come to peace with what happened at the diner, years ago…and I'm willing to suffer the consequences of it, but…I can't…I can't allow him to hurt Laurel…if I become…one of you…I might not be able to protect her…"

"There's no protection for any of us…both you, and her, will just become components of this place, like all the rest of us…" he replied; his voice deepened, darkening in a way that made her blood run cold.

"It doesn't _have_ to be that way, though! I can still at least save Laurel…she was just a child when all of this happened. She doesn't deserve…to be trapped here, forever…please…" she said, lowering her head.

"Springtrap won't let her leave…you know that," Fredbear said; his voice was so chilling that she actually felt herself go rigid. "This place…never lets anyone leave. Not entirely. It'll take bits and pieces of you, until there's nothing left. It's an act of mercy to just let it kill you all at once, and immerse yourself in it, and accept it…" Fredbear's gaze seemed to go beyond even the darkness ahead of them. "I asked for him to make it painless for you…I don't…want you to suffer, like she did. The spring locks didn't release properly...it took her a short time to die..." She could feel almost what felt like a faint shudder course through him, though it was gone as quickly as it started. "It'll be quick…and then this place can't hurt you, not in the same way. You won't have to die more than once."

"I don't want to lose my life at all…" Abigail said; her breathing was deepening and quickening as she felt the fear rushing into her.

"You already have," Fredbear replied, darkly. His optics glinted down towards her. "The moment that you stepped in here…you lost part of it, when you were at the diner, decades ago…and now that you're back, it's time for what remains to stay here as well. But…" she felt his grip tighten, but not in a way that was meant to harm her. It felt almost…reassuring. "I won't let it hurt you. You're…my one last reminder of what life…is like, outside of this darkness. I will protect you, Abby, from everything, and anything…even Ruby. I won't let her take you from here."

His voice sounded so genuine…and so terrifying. "Fredbear…she's my daughter…she and I…only have one another…she'll try to rescue me from here, no matter what form I'm in…" she strained out.

"If she tries, then I will make her suffer," Fredbear replied, staring on ahead, his optics faintly closed.

Abigail took in a shaky breath, but closed her eyes; she had to focus. She knew…she knew she was going to die. There was no way around that, now. But she knew from what Laurel had told her that she could retain who she was, if she could stay calm. Not that it was easy to stay calm when you knew you were about to die, but Laurel had explained that much of their personalities had formed because they had died under traumatic circumstances.

Her head buzzed with chaotic thoughts and resolve. 'None of them knew they would die, but I do. I can use it to my advantage. I can remember as much as possible…probably not everything. A violent death…is a violent death, no matter how quick it is. But I have to remember…who I am. I have to remember Laurel, I have to remember how much I love her, how she's my little girl…they're going to use me against her. I know that that's their plan, to lure her back down here with the hope she can save me. They're going to draw her back down here, into this hell…but I have to try to save her. Even if I can't save myself, if I can get her out of here, it'll be worth it…I can muster it. Even if she wants to try and help these…lost souls, down here…I have to remember her…one way or another…I can't forget my little girl…'

She focused, remembering endlessly her most cherished memories of Laurel growing up. Even the ones when she was really small from the diner, and then from the pizzeria…no matter what she knew now, Laurel's happiness had been pure, and her love for those places…it was the only positive ray of sunlight she could ever remember seeing, or feeling, when she'd been there. She remembered her favorite dances, her favorite monologues when she was in high school and college, even all of the cringe-y poems she'd written her home from school to make her laugh when she missed her.

'I have to remember her…even if I don't remember myself… _remember that she's your daughter…_!'

She opened her eyes when she realized that Fredbear had stopped, and saw they were in a large room. Though she didn't recognize it herself, they were actually in the Circus Gallery where Circus Baby and her BidyBabs resided. Springtrap and the other animatronics that had chased them were there. She was taken aback at how…angered they looked with her, aside from Springtrap. They were all so much more refined than the old animatronic suits she'd worked with, as well.

"When c-can we get B-Bonnet and R-Ruby back…?" Funtime Freddy's voice crackled.

"Very soon…she won't stay up there for too long. We have something she wants, now," Springtrap said, gesturing to Abigail.

"You made them leave us…but now _you're_ going to be staying with us, for good…" Funtime Foxy said; his sharp optics cut through the dimly lit room towards her.

"I didn't make them leave…he did," Abigail retorted, looking at Springtrap. "Why can't any of you see that he's just manipulating you like he did to us all those years ago…?" her voice broke a bit. It was almost eerie; William had had a similar…effect on people. Tabby had made passing jokes that he could sweet talk a person into unplugging their own life support if he'd wanted to.

"Why would we ever trust you…?" Ballora asked, her voice soft and serious. Abigail couldn't reply; Laurel had told her that they couldn't be reasoned with. Springtrap had them all wrapped around his servos now. She glimpsed up at Fredbear, who just stared on ahead, not meeting her gaze. Circus Baby said nothing; she just instead looked over her shoulder at the wall.

"No use in dwelling on the past, even the recent past…we have so much to do, after all," Springtrap said; she was sickened by how he could sound so blasé and nonchalant right now. He suddenly drew a cloth off of a magnetic recharger platform that had been designed for the newer animatronics, and used a lever to raise it so that the platform lifted, and then turned so one of the widths of it rested against the floor.

The animatronic on it was eerie; it was another humanoid one, a female that seemed to be designed for this part of the attraction. She had the same clown-inspired features that Circus Baby had, the segmented face plates, and wore a 'dress' segmented with flared parts at the shoulders and waist. Her 'hair' was drawn back into two large buns that had built in speakers, the same variety that some of the others had built into their chests.

"This is one of the prototypes they were working on for the Circus Gallery theatre…her name is Circus Darling. Sort of an accomplice to our dear Baby here…do you know what's unique about her though…?" Springtrap explained with an amused hum, before he pressed a button on the animatronic's chestplate; the whole thing suddenly jolted and seemed to jump alive for a moment. Abigail watched in silent terror as the suit opened down the middle of the head, torso, legs and arms, and revealed that the inside was empty. "She's still only modified as a spring-lock suit…albeit, a newer one…but unfortunately, they never did remove those dangerous rods from the head portion of it, nor their pesky sensitivity to moisture…" he tapped it, and she could see the internal components were just barely clinging to the inside of the suit. "So fortunate for us, isn't it, that they haven't gotten around to outfitting her with some internal circuitry…anyways, Fredbear, would you do the honors?"

Abigail let out a somewhat pained and fearful yelp as he suddenly lifted her, and then forced her back into the animatronic suit. Abigail instinctively took in a deep breath as the suit responded to this by closing back up, locking over her; it was a tight fit, and she could feel the sharp edges of the rods cutting into her scalp, arms, legs, and mid-drift. She could hear the ominous, small clicks of the spring locks slowly starting to slip loose as she was forced to let out her breath. She couldn't move her arms at all, either, to try and reset them through the seams before they'd release.

She could see them, staring at her, through the glossy optics of the animatronic.

"Try not to breathe too heavily…" Fredbear said, monotonously; his voice echoed throughout what small, empty spaces there were left in the suit.

"And don't cry…" Springtrap purred. "Can you feel the tears welling up in your eyes…knowing there's nowhere you can go…nowhere you can move…? It must be suffocating in there…like it was when you had to be, well…me…except this time…there's no one to let you out…"

Abigail could feel the burning in her eyes; weeping was an inevitability. She didn't want to die, and who would ever want to die this way? Trapped, suffocating…hearing the springlocks starting to come loose, slowly but surely. She closed her eyes, feeling their optics burning into her. She did her best to remember those memories, and hold steadfast onto them. The spring locks continued to sharply clatter and come loose violently as she started to breathe heavily in spite of her efforts to stay calm, hyperventilating out of fear.

 _'_ _Don't forget Laurel…don't forget yourself, and don't forget that she can still escape this place…'_

"I'm so sorry…Laurel…" she murmured; a few tears dripped from her eyes and she let out a shaky final breath.

It only took a few seconds for the springlocks to release once that moisture reached them. Abigail didn't even register any real pain, as it happened instantly. Her body only had time to let out a faint, gasping sound of pain as the rods suddenly released and buried themselves into her skull and throughout her body. It spasmed and wretched a moment, before it settled, and the suit stopped moving. Blood seeped from the seams along it, dripping onto the floor as the others were silent. Abigail's body let out a low, raspy death rattle as the last gasp of life drained from her swiftly.

"Let's get her cleaned up…it won't be long until she wakes up," Springtrap said, utterly calm and cold. "We have work to do…I think it's time for us to stop hiding down here…don't all of you? I think it's time…for us to get what belongs to us back once more…"

"And what if they do not want to come down here…?" Baby asked, quietly.

"Then we will drag them down here…and break them…or _destroy them_ ," Springtrap replied, his optics burning through the darkness towards them.

* * *

Ruby was in a daze; deep down, in her soul, she knew her mother was gone. She knew that Springtrap had no intentions of letting her live…but she also knew that her mother likely wouldn't be truly 'gone'. Springtrap really had been one step ahead of her, even all these times she'd done her best to try and out-think him.

As she'd staggered off of the lift, she had felt an odd sensation course through her, being on the 'surface' again, seeing faint rays of muted sunlight through the windows. The blizzard seemed to have passed for the most part now, though there were still snow banks piled high, and there were no signs that anyone else had arrived to the facility yet.

She wanted to cry, every fiber of her being wanted to weep and shudder and mourn. She could feel what she assumed was the closest thing to physically ill an animatronic could muster, the mechanisms in her torso twisting unforgivingly.

 _'You left her there to die…it's all your fault…'_

Ruby eventually couldn't bear it anymore, and collapsed, lowering her head to her knees. Bonnet and Plushtrap looked at her worriedly, cozying up against her to try and comfort her.

"There's nothing else you could have done, Ruby…" Plushtrap said.

"We'll do everything we can to help her…I promise…" Bonnet said, nestling her small head against her.

"I'm going…to do everything I can…but I…I won't have my mother back… Ruby said, raising her head. Condensation had formed in her optics, dripping down her face; it was as close to crying as she could muster. "She'll be trapped here…like this…no matter what I do…"

Neither of them could say anything. Ruby could feel her processor spinning, reeling at the thought. She felt so ashamed, so sickened, and so helpless…it was all too much to take, and she hadn't been able to charge in so long that she could feel her body starting to shut down. She eventually just went limp, and her world went black, as she was forced to go into a deep, dark sleep.


	13. Out of the Mouths of Babes

**Author's Note:** _Very strong _ violence warning on this chapter, though it's all recalled events from before the time of the story; the same will be for the next chapter as well though I'll write a new warning there. Also my own timeline might be a bit off, but I'm rolling with it for the sake of the story, so hopefully I'm close!

* * *

It didn't feel like a long time passed before she could feel herself stirring a bit, and worked to try and get her optics opened again. She was struck by how different the glow of the older lights were compared to the harsh fluorescent lights in the lower floors, and she could hear muffled voices around her as her processor scrambled to wake her up.

"I think she's starting to stir…everyone step back a bit. We don't want her to feel swarmed…" Bonnie's deeper voice rumbled.

"We just want to make sure she's okay…" Toy Chica replied, her high pitched voice sounding concerned.

"I wonder…what happened to her, down there…and to her old body…" Vixen said, contemplatively, her own voice fearful.

"None of ye better press 'er fer information…" she heard Foxy's voice growl a bit. "She's been through hell'n back…las' thing she wants ta do is have storytime on all of it…let 'er breathe and recover first…" There seemed to be a general consensus on that.

"We will still need to make certain that she doesn't endanger herself…" She heard the Puppet's calm, deeper voice suddenly quiet the rest of them. "After…what has happened, to her, and to her mother…"

Ruby's optics suddenly flew open as she heard him mention that, and she snapped up into a sitting position, startling essentially the dozen others in the room. Only the Puppet didn't jolt back from her in surprise. "You knew she came here?!" she suddenly cried out. Water welled in her optics again and streamed down her face, leftover 'tears' from earlier that had gathered from unknown dreams and painful memories while she had recharged.

The Puppet frowned, and stepped towards her. He looked so solemn and somber. "Laurel…I'm sorry. We did know she was here…the security alarms went off when she entered…but, we had no way of reaching her, or contacting her, from up here…and we've only accessed a few of the cameras down there, thanks to Springtrap…"

"You said…because of what has happened to her…" Ruby's voice crackled. "She's…she's dead…isn't she…? He killed her…with one of the suits…"

Everyone was silent. None of them could meet her gaze, except Foxy; she'd honestly never seen him look so heart-broken, or helpless. The Puppet rested his hands on her shoulders, knowing what would happen next.

"Yes…she…she is dead, Laurel…he has made her into one of us…"

Ruby wanted to lash out, she wanted to curse, and hurt herself, and damage whatever she could around her that wasn't them, essentially…she was filled with hatred, with loathing for herself, for doing this to herself and her mother…and with sadness, with knowing that her mother had died to save her, to get her up here again and give her even just another taste of freedom, of escape. But she found she didn't have the energy. Instead, she just collapsed into a heap on the table, gripping her face painfully and letting out an anguished wail.

"It's all my fucking fault…!" she suddenly screamed, her voice cracking and broken with pain. "If I hadn't been an idiot, if I hadn't…done what I did, if I hadn't left her, she would still be alive…!" she screamed; her voiced echoed throughout the floor.

She let go of her face, and just dissolved into full, wretched sobs. All of them approached her slowly, looking empathetic towards her pain, deeply, though Foxy immediately went to her and held her close. She couldn't help but bury her face into his shoulder and weep, feeling her tears drip down into his fur.

"Lass…none of this is yer fault…" he said, holding her close. "This place…is what did this…and Springtrap…"

"But I let it happen…! I became compliant, I…" her voice crackled, and she suddenly pushed back from him a bit. "I let him manipulate me…I knew he was lying…he tried turning me against all of you…he made me willing to stay trapped down there…even though I never lost sight of escaping, he made me…reliant…" it was the best word she could find. "He kept saying things to try and make me wary of everyone but him…and essentially…made me have to change bodies…"

"Did Ruby's original body become damaged severely…?" Freddy asked. "We were…a bit surprised when we found you like this…"

"Springtrap and Fredbear damaged it…" she said, softly, her voice crackling severely. "And I didn't think I could find enough strength to escape unless I found a new one…but…god…I never thought he'd trick my mother into coming here, and use her against me…I'd have just killed myself if I'd known…"

"Don't speak like that…" the Puppet said, somewhat sharply, though just to snap her out of it. "Changing into a secondary body will make getting you back into your original body more difficult, but not impossible…and…though your mother may not be able to return to hers, she is still alive, and she will likely remember who she is. As terrible as it is, what happened to her…she likely had time to steel herself in a way only you understand. We can still save what remains of her, and try to find a way to get you both out of here…"

Ruby felt her voice catch in her throat, but said nothing. "You look like you want to speak…what's wrong, Laurel?" the Puppet asked.

"Springtrap…said…that you didn't have any means or…intention to allow me to leave…" Ruby could barely believe she was admitting this. They were all silent, and the Puppet stepped back a bit.

"Springtrap lies to shake your resolve…it's what he's always done…" the Puppet replied.

"Is it true, though…? You…you sealed all of these souls here, to save all of them…" she said, looking to the others as they looked on, stunned into silence. "But…have you ever attached a soul to a human body once more?"

The Puppet was quiet, and looked to the side. "I have not…no. That part is not a lie…but at the time, when you came here, I felt it was the only way to keep you from meeting…a similar fate to what your mother has…" he said. "I knew that Springtrap would target you…and I also know his propensity for murdering those that cross his path. I had thought that if I attached you to an animatronic body, that we would have a much better chance of saving you. I believe we will find a way to get you back into your original form once more, it is just…something that we never got the chance to try. None of us…had bodies to return to…"

Ruby looked down at her hands, silent. Foxy frowned a bit and rubbed her shoulder to help console her. The Puppet looked around a bit, then back at her. "I know you will be mourning for some time, Laurel…I understand you are in a lot of pain. We will keep watch, but…we will give you time to grieve." He motioned for the others to leave. Foxy, however, stayed at her side, giving the Puppet a bit of a look before he departed as well. Foxy looked back at Ruby, who looked at him sadly.

"Is…is Rudy at least okay…?" she asked; she prepared herself for the worst.

"He's fine…he's still being repaired by Bonnie and Freddy, but…he'll pull through…" Foxy said. "He's too stubborn ta go offline fer good…"

"So many people have been hurt and now…killed…because of me, Foxy…and I don't know entirely what's real, anymore…" she said, quietly, holding her face in her hands.

"Lass, it's okay…we know what it's like…Springtrap had…ways of manipulating us, too…years ago…" he sighed. "He did…bad things…tried turnin' us against each other…an' make us hate ourselves…"

"He's gotten so much into my head, Foxy…even now…" she admitted. "It's like I can still…feel him nearby, feel that apprehension that he's going to drag me away…"

"He won', Ruby…none of us will let that happen again…even if we have ta fight 'em this time, we won' let 'em take ye…" he said, stroking her cheek a bit with his hand. He seemed curious and a bit off-put for a split second by her form she noticed, however. They were used to the older animatronics, after all…

"I became...attached, to the others down there…" she admitted, quietly.

"Tha ones from the sister location…?" Foxy asked. Ruby nodded, and he looked to the side.

"We'd hoped maybe…we could help 'em…but when they came 'ere…Springtrap had already turned them against us…Freddy an' I went to offer an olive branch…and they tried to kill us…" Foxy said, quietly. "They're built…heartier, than we are…tha's why we've stayed away from the basements…knowin' they were there…but we didn't know how bad it was…"

Ruby was quiet, then looked at him softly. "Foxy…I know…this might make you…angry, to ask you this…but…" she trailed off. He looked at her.

"Angry…? Why would I be angry?" he asked. "You've jus' been through hell…"

Ruby steeled herself a bit. "Foxy…do you…do you and the others…truly want me to be human, again…? I know that you went through all of this to help me, I know you all genuinely care about me…but…I know…what happened to the other guards that were here, before me…does it…does it make all of you disgusted that I want to be human, again…?" she asked.

Foxy was silent; she could see him shift his gaze, and then he slowly stood up. "How can ye ask me that…after everythin' tha's happened…?"

"Because I have to know the truth…I don't know what's real, and what's not, anymore…if what I've been told by anyone…is true…" she admitted, holding her head in her hands. "Please…just tell me…"

Foxy was quiet, but she felt him approach her, and suddenly rest his hand on her head, with a small comforting pressure. "Ye know I care about ye, right, Ruby…?" he said. She nodded faintly. "Ruby…when ye were down thar, I couldn' rest…I waited and paced and wanted nothin' more than ta charge down thar and get ye back…" he paused. "I wan'…whatever ye wan'. If ye want ta leave as a human…then so be it…but…" he trailed off, looking to the side a bit. "The others…were worried about ye…an' hoped ye'd stay…they…they don' understand tha' being human again…is tha' only way to escape this place…humans haven't been kind to us, over the years. They think tha they're all the same, now…"

"They…they think I'd be that terrible if I were to become human, again…?" Ruby asked, her voice shaking a bit.

"I don' think so…it's just…we're all close 'ere. We've all suffered 'ere…and we can't imagine or know a life ousside 'ere anymore…so…it might be hard fer them to accept, but…they'll have to, one way or another…"

Ruby felt a bit apprehensive; he made it sound like the others could almost be…resistant to her leaving. Just as Springtrap had said…

"Lass…whatever it is we have ta do, I'll be here to help ye, all right…?" he said; he knelt down so he was more level with her and tapped her chin with the curve of his hook so she'd look at him. "We'll getcher mum back, and find a way ta help 'er, and ye…I promise…" he said.

Ruby believed him, but…Springtrap's words still rattled badly in her head. She wanted so badly to trust him – all of them – again…but after seeing how rapidly the others down below had turned against her, when she had tried to leave…it had shaken her to her core.

Foxy stood. "Why don' ye try an' get more rest, lass…" he said, gently. "While ye do, we may try'n rummage…see if we can' find ye a new body tha's not from…the other location…" he said, trailing off a bit.

Ruby looked at him a bit incredulously. "If I change bodies again, Foxy, I might not even be able to return to being human…" she said, quietly. "And you said yourself…the newer animatronics are stronger, I could be able to fight them better like this than-"

"I'm not arguin' on this, lass…" he suddenly said; she was struck a bit by how firm his tone was, though he sighed, his expression soften again almost immediately. "Jus…take my word fer it…ye can' stay like that, if ye want to leave 'ere…now, jus' recharge fer a bit while we figure out what we can do…"

Ruby was going to press him a bit more, but as he left, she suddenly realized something. "Wait…where's Bonnet and Plushtrap…?" she asked. "I…I promised I'd take them with me when I escaped…they…they hated it down there, too…" she said softly.

"Thar safe…the Puppet's jus' makin' sure they aren' spies for Springtrap's all…once he's done, he'll bring them back to ye. They been askin' bout ye," he explained, before he left, and before she could press him more.

But Ruby suddenly felt…strange. Why did this form bring them so much apprehension? She was still an animatronic, like they were. There was something they weren't telling her, and she knew it, though she also knew trying to get a straight answer was likely impossible from anyone here. There were so many dark secrets, so many terrible things…but she knew that dwelling on it was pointless for now.

She still felt so gutted, knowing what had happened to her mother, however; she knew that if she were human, it would have felt much worse. As it stood, her memories were only growing fainter, especially now…knowing that the mother she remembered was gone, and there was nothing she could do to undo that. But she knew that she had to still do everything in her power to remember the good times, the good memories; it was the only way she would remain Laurel. Even if in the end, she couldn't have her body back…she still wanted to be Laurel, even just in part. She didn't want to lose her humanity, and become fully engulfed in this place...and she still wanted to help them, all of them, and stop Springtrap. She laid down on the charging pad, feeling the warm stream of energy moving up into her; it wasn't as efficient as the charging cables that the newest animatronics used, but it would do for now.

'The blizzard has ended…that means that people will be back here, eventually…workers, parents, children…there'll be more deaths, more suffering…it'll just continue unless something is done…' she thought to herself, as she laid down. "Mom…she knew all those years ago it was like this…yet she did everything she could so that I'd always believe it was a wonderful place…I can't stop believing…that it can be happy again. It can never be perfect, but…even if none of them can be humans again…they can still feel true joy, and be at peace…I know it. I just have to…keep going…somehow…'

* * *

Ruby didn't recharge for long before she felt a small stirring beside her, and started to 'wake up' only to find Bonnet tucked in against her. The small animatronic was curled up in a ball, pressed against her. Ruby shifted a bit onto her side and hugged her close.

"Did I wake you up?" Bonnet asked in a small voice.

"No, I didn't rest well," Ruby admitted quietly. "Are you okay Bonnet?"  
"Uh huh…Mr. Puppet said that I'm…trust…trustworthy…" she said, trying to find the right word.

"That's good…" she did relax, knowing that Bonnet at least would be safe up here. "But where's Plushtrap? Is he still questioning him…?"  
Bonnet was quiet and shook her small head. "They don't…trust him…they're sending him back…"

Ruby froze up a bit, and sat up, looking down at Bonnet with an incredulous expression. "What do you mean, 'sending him back'?"

"They're…bah-banishing him…back down into the basement and the n-neew places…" Bonnet said, trying to explain.

Ruby's brow furrowed, and she stood up, hoisting Bonnet into her arms and carrying her along as she went looking for the others. It didn't take long for her to find Freddy, roaming the hallways and keeping an eye out.

"Didn't expect you to wake so soon…we figured you'd be pretty tired…" Freddy said, giving her a warm smile.

"Freddy…where's Plushtrap? Bonnet said that you…you were banishing him…" Ruby said.

Freddy frowned, looking away from her a bit. "The Puppet said that he's not trustworthy…he's worried that his programming might allow Springtrap to manipulate him..." Freddy sighed. "We've learned not to question his decision on whom to trust…after all, we tried our best with the animatronics from the other location, and…well, they tried to destroy us…"

"But Plushtrap is just a small animatronic, he's just a kid…and he's terrified of them…" Ruby replied; she could feel a knot of apprehension growing in her throat.

"I'm not the one to plead his case to, unfortunately…you'll have to talk to the Puppet. Plushtrap is still up here…we were going to send him down the chute back into the basements," Freddy replied, rubbing the back of his head. "He's just down this corridor, if you want to speak with him."

"Thank you," Ruby said, nodding to him before she took off looking for him. The Puppet was in one of the smaller rental rooms, along with Foxy and the two Bonnies. Plushtrap was there was well; he was loosely bound to one of the heavy party tables, though just by his wrist, to keep him from fleeing. Ruby paused outside of the room; she hated eavesdropping, but given that no one here seemed to have many intentions of just giving her the straight truth, she stepped to the side and listened, peering just around the door frame to see what was happening.

"Please, you can't send me back down there…they'll either dismantle me or I'll be indoctrinated into their weird little 'family'…" Plushtrap said; Ruby wasn't exactly the best judge of character, she knew, but his fear sounded thorough and genuine to her.

The Puppet sighed a bit. "You're very…articulate, for being so 'young'..." he noted, plainly.

"I told you already, I was originally programmed years ago when the diner was still around…they just never used me. I was supposed to perform with Spring Bonnie and Fredbear, but...they shelved me because of battery issues, or something…" Plushtrap said; he sounded almost exhausted, like they'd been grilling him for a while.

"It's not that we don't trust you as you are right now…" Bonnie said, his deeper voice also sounding tired. "But you were refurbished and reprogrammed alongside both of them, Plushtrap…that means you're likely more susceptible to the madness that's overtaken them…"

"Springtrap's just insane…he's being driven by whatever remains of the sick mentality William Afton had…" Plushtrap spat back. Hearing that name seemed to bring a terrible unrest over the others. Plushtrap was silent a moment, seeming to realize this. "You know…pretending he never existed doesn't make what he did go away…"

"We still try to not think about him, or Springtrap…remembering those things just brings back awful feelings and…" Toy Bonnie started, though he trailed off, seeming thoroughly unnerved. Bonnie rested his hand on his younger variation's shoulder to console him a bit.

"Springtrap's got terrible plans for this place…we all know this," Foxy said, sternly; his voice was surprisingly level, though Ruby could sense a welling of anger behind it. He looked at Plushtrap with an indignant expression. "Even if he doesn't plan to use you against us now, what's ta keep 'im from doing it down tha line, hmm? How do we know you aren't loyal to them and hiding it well? Fredbear and Spring Bonnie were yer mateys back in the day…"

"Yes…back before they became Golden Freddy and Springtrap…you're comparing four different beings to one another, you know…" Plushtrap replied, suddenly gritting his small teeth. "Are you really going to penalize me for what they've done?! I have no intentions of following in anything they want to do! They're both driven by madness, why would I want any part of that?!"

The Puppet crossed over to him and looked down at him, somewhat harshly at first, but then his expression softened into almost looking sad. "With a soul like that within you…you're still so susceptible to becoming like them…." He said cryptically, shaking his head a bit. "I'm sorry, Plushtrap…but…I can't allow you to stay here. Springtrap's becoming bolder and more dangerous than ever before, and…I just can't take the risk of him using you against us. Maybe someday we can talk about this once more, but…after everything that's happened in the last few days, with Laurel and her mother…it's just too hazardous right now…" he looked to Foxy and Bonnie. "Make sure you use some of the blankets to pad his fall…the chute will send him back down into the old part of the compound…"

There seemed to be an unspoken air of ascent, and Bonnie suddenly picked up the smaller animatronic in his arm, undoing the binding that was holding him to the table. Plushtrap immediately started to resist and kicked his small legs. "Let me go! You can't do this, please!" he cried out, his voice shrilling more with terror.

"No, stop…!" Ruby suddenly called out, revealing herself and standing in the doorway. The five of them seemed a bit startled by her sudden appearance.

"Ruby…were you spying on us…?" The Puppet asked.

Ruby bit her lower lip, looked away slightly. "Listen…I know that we're all…on edge, and for good reason…with everything that's happened we have to be cautious, but…you can't just throw him back down there. If you do, then he either will die, or he'll be manipulated like the others…"

"Ruby…you of all beings should know why we can't risk having him here…" The Puppet started.

Ruby frowned, deeply, feeling her optics burn a bit. "I know…but…sending him back there isn't going to bring her back…" she said, quietly, her voice crackling a bit. Plushtrap looked a bit confused at her and them.

"Lass…jus' let us decide this, okay?" Foxy said; he sounded firm still, but his tone was much softer, like he was trying to spare her her feelings.

"No…please…" Ruby continued. "If he's of suspicion, then let me just watch after him…I'll keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn't do anything weird. I don't mind doing it, if that's what it takes…"

"But…if he is working for Springtrap, that would make you vulnerable…" Bonnie pointed out.

"Then I'll take on that risk if need be…" she said, her gaze faltering a bit. "Please…just…let me do this…please just trust me…"

There was a strong silence after her plea, and the four of them glimpsed at one another and seemed to come to another quiet consensus.

"Very well, Ruby…if this means this much to you, we'll give him a probationary period…but he has to be in your sight and grasp at all times, and if not yours, one of ours…" The Puppet said. "If nothing happens for some time, we'll reconsider all of this…"

"That's all that I ask…" Ruby said. She looked down at Plushtrap, who looked genuinely surprised, but also relieved.

"Release him to her custody," The Puppet said to Bonnie, who nodded a bit and let go of him. He plopped down onto the floor, but immediately ran over to Ruby, grasping onto her thigh a bit. He let out a small thank you and buried his face into her leg.

"If yer sure on this, lass, I'll help ye keep an eye on 'im…" Foxy said, though Ruby noted that he didn't sound too pleased. She'd have to talk with him later, and better explain her wanting to do this.

Ruby just looked down at Plushtrap, then scooped him up into her other arm. He was larger and heavier than Bonnet, but being in her Funtime body gave her more than enough strength to pick him up. He immediately flopped against her shoulder, seeming content, still thanking her under his breath.

The Puppet turned from them. "Now that that is settled, leave me for now…I have to see what I can retrieve of what Springtrap and the others are up to, down there…we only have two camera feeds left, now…they've been slowly finding them…"

"We may have to consider sneaking down there and replacing them…even one or two more would give us a better vantage point…" Toy Bonnie said, albeit a bit nervously.

"It's too risky…they know we'll be trying something soon…" Bonnie said. "We'll have to think of something else…"

Ruby looked to Foxy as he seemed prone to staying in on their conversation. "Can you meet me a bit later? At Pirate Cove…?" she said. "Like…in a couple hours, or so…I want to talk to you."

Foxy's expression lightened a bit, and he nodded. "Aye, Ruby…I'll see ye thar. Ye can check on Rudy then, too; he's been recoverin' back thar."

Ruby nodded, and turned to leave. Once they were out of ear shot of the others, Plushtrap about tackled her backwards as he wrapped his arms around her neck and hugged her tightly. "Thank you for this, Ruby…" he said; she could hear his voice shaking a bit. "I was terrified they were going to send me back there…"

Ruby patted his back a bit, smiling faintly. "It's all right…you don't deserve to be punished for what Springtrap has done…but, I do have to keep an eye on you. I don't want them to get suspicious…"

"That's okay…I understand," he said. "I wouldn't want to be far from Bonnet anyways…" he said, giving her a playful tap on her nose. Bonnet giggled a bit and gently clasped his hand, also looking relieved that he wasn't leaving them.

"How did you two meet? I thought you were from the old location, at the diner…" Ruby said, arriving back to 'her' room and sitting down on the floor, the two smaller ones sitting on her legs as she sat with them crossed.

"I was dragged to the sister location back when it was still being built up, but they didn't think I fit the theme there very well…also the reason that Springtrap was able to move behind the scenes…they decided not to use him either at the time, and Golden Freddy was in pieces and being refurbished, so…" he sighed. "I mostly had to try and socialize after closing…the others there didn't trust me much, though. Springtrap went out of his way to keep me from making friends, except for Bonnet…"

"I didn't want you to be lonely…" Bonnet said, softly. "It wasn't fair…they were so mean to you…"

Ruby looked at Plushtrap, puzzled. "Why did he want to isolate you from them…?"

"You've got me there…he kept making passing 'jokes' about not wanting his 'protégé' to be softened by the others…oddly enough, even though he locked me in that case before we were transported here, he never went out of his way to hurt me, or even manipulate me the way he did the others…" he looked off to the side. "I feel like…maybe he did have something planned for me. But I couldn't tell you what it is…"

"Springtrap has a habit of doing that, doesn't he…he's always several steps ahead of you…" Ruby said. "But I trust you, Plushtrap…just…don't let me regret doing this, okay?" she said, softly. "Springtrap…has taken a lot from me, in these last few days…including my mom…"

Plushtrap stiffened, and looked up at her, shocked. "You mean that lady, Abigail…? He…?" he trailed off, and Ruby's deadened gaze answered him. He frowned, looking guilted, before looking quite angry, and then sad. "I remember your mother too…a bit…from the diner…"

"You do…?" Ruby asked; her tone was still gutted, but memories of her mother were scarce. Whatever he could remember would be something else that would help her preserve what memories she had left.

"She always seemed tired, but nice…she helped clean us in the backroom, after shows. I remember that the other workers were all kind of…rough, handling us…but she was always really careful…heh, she'd talk to us sometimes, too…" Plushtrap said, giving Ruby a weak smile. "She…had to wear the suits a lot, because she was short…William always made her too because he knew they scared her…" he added on, a bit darkly.

"William…he's the one that started all of this, isn't he…" Ruby said. "Do you remember him much…?"

"Yes…but I don't want to…" Plushtrap said. "He did a lot of awful things…and all for what? To feel power? Control? Who knows anymore…he did terrible things when it was just us around…he used to talk to us too, you know…"

Ruby looked side to side, feeling apprehensive at the ominous way he spoke, but she had so many questions, and also a small dose of morbid curiosity within her. "What kind of things did he do, and say…?" she asked. Bonnet looked uncomfortable and shut her ears, murmuring how she didn't want to hear about all of this.

Plushtrap looked uneasy, but Ruby rested a hand on his head. "You don't have to tell me, if it's too…uncomfortable, or painful…"

Plushtrap shifted a bit, but his expression calmed, becoming almost steely. "No…you deserve to know the truth, Ruby…after everything that's happened…" he glimpsed out the door. "The others don't want to tell you…and Springtrap might, but he'll twist everything in terrible ways. It's best…that you know what you're up against…I'm cobbling this altogether too, from what's happened over the years…so my timeline might be a bit off, but…I can remember a lot of what happened, since I've been shuffled around for so many years…so I'm going off of what I saw firsthand, or what…William, or Springtrap, have told me...they just love to talk about the awful, awful things they do…" he added, with a hiss.

It was odd to her, to hear Plushtrap speak so seriously and with such enunciation with such a childlike voice, but she nodded, giving him her attention. Plushtrap stood, starting to pace a bit, his smaller feet clanking against the metal floor as he did so.

"William hid his mental instabilities and demons really well…you know, he had a wife, two sons and a daughter…but he was a sociopath. He was really good at fooling people, though…he lived a double life, in the diner, and then the pizzeria, before he was eventually made into Springtrap. He was really loved by his family…but they didn't know what lied beneath the surface. I can't know for sure if he ever tried to get help for whatever evil was inside of him, but by the time he created the diner, and then Fazbear Entertainment as a whole, he'd fully embraced whatever it was that lurked in the recess of his soul.

I know all of this, because he used to talk about the fun things he'd do with his family, intermixed with…stories…of what he'd done around the diner. He had a really…awful affinity for the young women that worked there. He only preyed on the ones that were 'weak', though…ones that had bad home lives, like Shelley, Cassandra…and Tabitha. He talked about Tabby…a lot. About…" Plushtrap paused and shuddered a bit. "I won't repeat all of it…it's too disgusting…but he enjoyed manipulating her. He made her trust him. She had really mean and restrictive parents, who didn't let her go off to her college of choice, and liked to control her. So William befriended her…bought her things here and there she liked, along with her vices. She was still really young, and impressionable, and he knew it…but it was just all toying with her, for a long time. And then…came the day that shaped everything…"

"The day that Tabitha died in the Fredbear suit…?" Ruby asked, her voice barely a whisper.

"No, actually…that came a few months later…" Plushtrap said. "A few months before then…at closing…he…he did something really…really bad, to her…" he said, shuddering. "Fredbear, and Spring Bonnie, and I…we could all hear it…we weren't fully sentient then, but…this place, it retains all of the worst moments and memories…" he cringed. "It's distant now…but I can still remember it, and I wish I couldn't…"

"What did he do…?" Ruby asked, though by the utter dread in his tone, she'd already ventured a guess.

"He…" Plushtrap glimpsed Bonnet, and bit his lower lip. "He…put something in her soda, to disorient her, and he…assaulted her…"

Ruby could feel a horrible shudder throughout her being, though she had anticipated it. "Oh gawd…how could he…" she murmured.

"I think, by this point, he felt so little for almost everyone, besides maybe his family…" Plushtrap said. "I think they were the only ones that might have elicited some kind of actual emotion from him, though the extent of that…didn't last long, if it was there to begin with…"

"What do you mean…?" Ruby asked.

"Tabitha was killed in the suit, like…three months later, I think…and she wasn't the only one who died, Ruby…" Plushtrap said, his tone grave.

"What do you…" Ruby started, but then it suddenly hit her. It actually made her feel a wave of sickness, or whatever equivalent they could feel, wash over her. "No…no…" she murmured, lowering her head, holding her face in her hand. "She was…oh no…" her voice shook with tremors.

"I guess she had planned to keep the baby, even though he was created…by something terrible happening to her…" Plushtrap said, now fully turned away from her. "Tabitha's death…wasn't intentional…though…it did mark the beginning of all the death that would eventually fill this place…" Plushtrap said, his head lowered. "Fredbear…became what we call Golden Freddy, when Tabitha died…the pain, and stress, that she felt…it filled him with a terrible rage…and not too long after she died, the next victim came along…"

Ruby was absolutely striken with terror, but she kept listening, knowing that the more that she knew about this place, the better prepared she would be for what was to come.

"William's youngest son, Jason, was really terrified of the diner…it was around when the pizzeria was just opening, and the new characters had been unveiled. He was actually kind of scared of me too, though he was mostly terrified of the newer animatronics, since they moved around on their own. His older brother Michael, though…he was really mean to him. He used to scare him wearing a Foxy mask, and when they were here for Jason's birthday…Michael and three of his friends all ganged up on him, wearing those masks, and they raised him up close to Fredbear's head…and Fredbear killed him. He clamped down onto Jason's head, and crushed his skull…"

Ruby let out a sound of pain, and winced, shuddering into herself, still holding a still evasive Bonnet, who had her ears pressed down still.

"Jason was only alive for a few days after the incident…he went into a coma, and then passed away…after that…well, my theory is that whatever sanity William might have still had snapped…" Plushtrap said. "I think…having his family broken like that destroyed whatever grasp William still had on reality…" he paused. "After Jason died…William took his vengeance, first, on the child that became the Puppet, testing his capacity for violence…and then, on those poor kids, his son's friends…"

"Their souls…they're the ones that inhabited…the animatronics…?" Ruby said.

"Both the originals, and later the Toy animatronics. When William destroyed the original animatronics, before they were salvaged and reconstructed, their souls went to the Toy animatronics before they were eventually able to pass on. But the originals, even in their…states of disrepair, still acted out with violence. Their programming had been twisted and distorted by the childrens' want for vengeance and their pain…" Plushtrap said, finally becoming still, and sitting down cross legged. "But William wasn't satisfied with just that…when he realized that the souls of the children were inhabiting the animatronics, at first…he was petrified, which led to him destroying the original ones…but then, the deranged recesses of his mind started to turn…and he realized that he could…preserve, his little family…in animatronics…"

Ruby started to feel her chest tighten. "I assume…that they're all animatronics now…?"

"Jason's soul inhabited Golden Freddy, alongside what remnants of Tabitha's tortured soul remained, until she was able to pass on…but the terror he felt made Golden Freddy…dependent, upon William, and now Springtrap…he was able to wield him as a weapon, and used him to lure the later animatronics into a false sense of security…he even used him to lead them to their destruction, before they were recreated when the company was acquired by new owners recently, of course…"

"I feel like we're getting a bit…ahead, here…" Ruby said, though she couldn't deny that she was regretting learning more about all of this. It made everything inside of her…hurt. That was the best way she could describe it. And yet, knowing some more of the timeline – even if Plushtrap's 'model' was off – still gave her some insight to what had happened in this place all those years ago.

"Yes, I'm sorry…well…William eventually shut down the diner, and later the pizzeria, after the bodies of the children were found inside of the suits…the murders eventually were blamed on someone unrelated to the pizzeria who was found dead on the property, and William was cleared of potential wrongdoing…"

"You said…he did this to his whole family, though…" Ruby said.

"In truth, I don't know what happened to his son Michael…even though he was a part of the plot that ended up killing his brother Jason, William…had some weird affinity with Michael's own sociopathy. I think that they eventually just went their separate ways. William went on to form Circus Baby's Entertainment and Rental. Supposedly a fresh start for his wife and daughter, away from the carnage at the old places…but, he never intended to spare them from the evil here. He created Baby as a massive animatronic, as you've seen…and he specifically programmed her to…be able to kill a small child, if they got just within range of her…" Plushtrap's whole body seemed to seize a moment. "He almost didn't get his wish, of course…as the new place was opening, he returned to the old pizzeria…and that was when he used Golden Freddy to lure the animatronics into the back of the building…where he tore them apart with an axe. I think he started to get…paranoid, at that point, that they'd come after him and kill him. The Puppet had kept them alive until that point, fueling them with hopes of vengeance…but when he did this, he released the children's souls from the suits…he was terrified to see them coming after him…that was when he donned the Spring Bonnie suit, that was abandoned in the back of the pizzeria…the children were fearful of it…" he paused. "That was the suit he used…to lure the children away from their party, only a few months after Jason died. That was when he butchered all of them, and put their remains into the animatronics…" Ruby gagged a bit, unable to help herself. "The spirits of the children were terrified of him in it, remembering how they died…but William got cocky. He started to laugh at them…which put moisture onto the spring locks. The suit was already tight on him, as it had been calibrated for someone shorter than him…when that happened, the spring locks penetrated his skull, and killed him instantly…

That bound his soul to the suit, but with a stronger…ferocity, than the others experienced. Those that die inside of the suits, actually within them…seem to retain more of the raw emotions and memories of their victims…William himself may have passed on, but…his goals, his bloodlust…they didn't.

The Spring Bonnie suit rotted there, along with what remained of William, for some time…before Fazbear's Fright eventually opened. That was when Springtrap came to life, in the incarnation that we know now…fueled by William's twisted desires, and his want to continue killing…and make his family into some awful, artificial variation of what it once was…once he managed to destroy Fazbear's Fright in that awful fire, he managed to drag himself to the sister location…and continued his work, there, behind the scenes. His old form, Spring Bonnie, was hulking like Golden Freddy, but it was badly worn and damaged by the fire, and just by time. So when he was found, they removed the old coating, slimmed it down and made it into some kind of combination of the toy and sister location animatronics…I guess he was designed to be a roaming animatronic…"

Ruby felt her chest tighten more, slumping forward a bit. "And…what of the other sister location animatronics…? How did…how did they come into being…? I have an inkling on…one of them. His daughter…was…was killed by Circus Baby…right…?" Ruby continued, though it was growing difficult to press him now.

"Yes…Circus Baby had a compressor built into her that William specifically designed for that purpose, and Springtrap knew it…the company that continued William's 'dream' had questioned him on why he included that her Baby's design, but...somehow, he convinced them it was a necessity…the ice cream function she had though, it never seemed to work correctly...not till Springtrap was there, of course, and recalibrated Baby behind the scenes...and the first time she was able to create it was...for little Heather, to lure her close enough...the compressor inside of Baby grabbed her, and crushed her to death..." Plushtrap cringed. "Sorry…I don't…mean to be so…graphic…it's just…part of me wonders how no one caught on to all of this…all of these horrible things happened and yet…no one knew? I guess, though…it makes sense…since the few night guards that did manage to catch on, well…either died to the animatronics, or…Springtrap…" he took a moment to regain his composure."Well…you can probably venture a guess what soul allowed Ballora to gain sentience…" Plushtrap said.

"His wife…" Ruby said, softly.

"William's wife Julia was a professional dancer…self-taught, as she was legally blind…" Plushtrap said; his voice was very low now, recounting all of this. "I think Ballora was modeled after his wife even when he designed her, originally...it would make sense, given what he...intended..."

"Springtrap said that her death was…the saddest…" Ruby said.

"At that point in time, William had been missing for, well, months…maybe even a year. Poor Julia…she'd searched for him, done everything she could…even continuing his legacy in having Circus Baby's Entertainment and Rental finished and running it half-heartedly, with the machines that William designed…and she'd lost two of her children in terrible accidents in these places. I can't help but feel that she was either mentally ill herself, wanting to keep this place going, or…maybe she felt her childrens' presence in the machines…who knows…"

"How…how did she die…?" Ruby asked.

"Springtrap killed her himself…" Plushtrap said. "He still…had some of William's memories…he replicated his voice, removed the synthetic tone we all carry so he sounded genuinely like William…and lured her into the Parts and Service department…and stabbed her to death. All while telling her how much he hated her, and their family…she died hearing her husband's voice, telling her that she was worthless, and pitiful, mocking her for thinking he was anything but a monster…I suppose, as awful as it was…she died at least knowing what William really was…"

"And what about…the other animatronics…? There's still Vixen…she was Mangle, back then, at the second pizzeria…and also the other sister location animatronics…"

"Mangle was formed because of another freak accident, actually…when she was dismantled, her programming started to become…twisted, by the vengeful nature of the children's souls around her. She eventually managed to become sentient enough to where she killed a security guard, a young woman who was working an evening event…she'd bitten another guard before, through his frontal lobe, though he survived…but the second guard wasn't as lucky…

As for the other sister location animatronics…my assumption is that Springtrap wanted more pawns in his scheme, so he wanted them to become sentient, and killed in order to fulfill his 'soul quota' of sorts…Funtime Foxy was a technician that he killed…I guess he was a single father who hated working here, but needed the job to support his kids…Springtrap waited for him to be cleaning out the Scooper one night, which was malfunctioning…it was a device that ripped the internal components out of the animatronics there…"

Ruby gagged a bit again, thinking about how traumatic that had to be.

"He activated it when the technician was in there, and…well…you can probably envision the rest…" Plushtrap paused. "Funtime Freddy, Bon, and Bonnet…they're probably the ones that make me the saddest…" he admitted. Ruby could feel her stomach, or whatever component was closest to one, sink in anguish.

"They were killed during a birthday party…Bon, and Bonnet, were twins, both children…Springtrap by that point was fully refurbished, and moved about without much worry of being suspicious to the day workers. He wasn't used for entertainment, but I suppose they thought he'd been programmed to help with tasks around the facility, so no one questioned seeing him move about. He lured the twins into a backroom, where he was waiting for them…with a cleaver…"

Bonnet suddenly started to shake in her arms, and she realized that she was listening. Ruby let out a helpless whimper and held her close, wanting so badly to just take that anguish out of her. It suddenly hit her; the reason Bonnet, deep down, had never trusted Springtrap…was because she still had memories of dying because of him…

 _"_ _We're going to play a little game…" Springtrap smiled, holding the blade in his hand. The twins looked at him, uncertain, suddenly realizing that they were in danger. Connor turned and tried to open the door they'd come through, but it was locked shut behind them. Lily started to cry, feeling terror overtake her as Springtrap approached them._

 _"_ _We're going to see which one of you can bleed to death the fastest…who wants to go first…?" he asked, his voice dropping as his red eyes glinted down at them through the darkness. Both children cowered from him. "No volunteers, hm? That's okay…I can choose for you, instead…"_

 _He looked between them as they both tried pressing further from him, against the door. He suddenly brought the blade up…and slashed it deep across Lily's throat._

"Oh Bonnet…it's okay…" Ruby said, feeling her shake horribly against her. The small animatronic started to cry and let out small, terrified sounds, pressing in against her as though her life depended on it. "I'll protect you from him, I won't let him hurt you like that again…" she said. It sent waves of anguish through her, as though she could feel those last few gasps of life pass from Lily as her soul left her body, and the blood flowed out from her neck.

Plushtrap looked pained, now, seeing how this was affecting Bonnet, but his recollections were nearly over. "After he killed them…their…their father went looking for them…and Springtrap…he left the door open, knowing he'd find them there…"

 _"_ _Connor…Lily…oh god…no…no…!"Benjamin cried out; he couldn't help but cradle his children's bloodied bodies in his arms. "Someone…anyone…help…please! Please help…!" he screamed out. He heard heavy footsteps approach from behind him, and turned, tears streaked down his face. "Please help…someone…someone's killed my babies…" he barely managed to get out._

 _"_ _Don't worry…you won't have to live long without them…" Springtrap replied, right before he brought the blade down once more, severing enough flesh from Benjamin's neck that he was about decapitated. His body spasmed, and slumped forward, falling so that he was on his side, his children's dead bodies in his arms._

"D-daddy…!" Bonnet suddenly cried out, lurching heavily in Ruby's arms. She started to cry once again, shuddering. Ruby had to prevent her from falling to the floor, the action was so violent, but Bonnet fell apart quickly. Ruby could only do what she could to console her, and try to calm her, though how could she comfort away that kind of horror and trauma?

Ruby stood, and gently set Bonnet down; she was becoming inconsolable, and kept pushing away, trying to escape, in the throes of spastic memories of her death. Ruby set her on the table, kneeling down as she switched it on. Bonnet's body started to calm as the magnetized table pulled her onto it, though not too strongly; they could get off of them, but the weighted feel of it seemed to calm her, along with the lull of the energy being streamed into her. Ruby rested her forehead against Bonnet's, wishing she could do something – anything! – the reverse what happened to them. Bonnet eventually fell asleep, her small face wet with tears.

"That just leaves…one more, then…" Ruby said, turning to Plushtrap. "Who's…who's soul resides within you, Plushtrap…?" Ruby asked.

Plushtrap approached her, and to her weak surprise, he suddenly wrapped her leg again, and buried his face into it for a moment.

"I…I woke up…on the day Tabitha died…" he said.

Ruby looked down at him, feeling tears well up in her optics. "You…you have the soul…of William and Tabitha's child…?"

Plushtrap looked up at her. "That's why he locked me up, Ruby…he knew that I knew all of this…he didn't want me to tell them…to have them remember what happened…even though they'd probably never believe me, or Bonnet now…he didn't want me to spoil his plans…so he locked me in that container…he said…he said he had a surprise for me…I spent all that time in there, terrified, wondering what he had in store for me…what he'd do to me…if they made me go back down there…" he paused, his optics looking misty. "It's also…why the Puppet doesn't trust me…the person I was supposed to be was formed by those that ended up creating Golden Freddy and Springtrap…they…they think I'm going to turn into them…that they'll catch me and mold me into some kind of twisted 'son'…"

"Don't worry…I'm not going to let that happen…" Ruby said, she reached down and held him close. "I'm going to do everything in my power to keep you and Bonnet safe from him…I promise. I won't let him hurt you…"

Plushtrap sniffled a bit, and rested his face against her shoulder. "You're so kind, Ruby…but…in all truth…I'm more worried about you than myself…whatever he has planned for me, well…it's par for the course for what Springtrap has done already…" Plushtrap said, pulling back slightly and looking up at her. "But you…you weren't a part of his plan…you weren't meant to survive…and be here, for all of this…"

"He has my body…if he wanted me truly trapped inside this animatronic for the rest of my existence, then he could have already done it…" Ruby said.

"I know…that's what scares me…" Plushtrap lowered his voice. Ruby tensed from his tone, but didn't press him further. She didn't want to know the implications; everything he had told her already had overwhelmed her to her core.

"We should get some rest…I didn't recharge well before, and…this has been a pretty…eventful day…hasn't it…" Ruby said; she'd never felt so tired, or weighted, in her entire life. As anguished as she still was about her mother…at least she hadn't seen her die. Her mother had died protecting her, had made a choice, knowing what was to come…the horror that these others had gone through…she couldn't even imagine…

 _'_ _That still leaves the question…what does he intend for me…?'_

Ruby climbed up onto the recharge table, and laid on her side. Plushtrap looked at Bonnet with so much sorrow in his optics, and nestled in against her, holding her close protectively. Ruby wrapped her arms around them both in turn and held them against her.

Plushtrap did eventually fall 'asleep'; she could feel his form go lax as he did. It took her a while longer, as it was impossible to get all of those images out of her head. The longer she had stayed in this body, the more and more she was losing some of her senses…primarily smell, and taste. But Plushtrap's stories had reminded her of one…

The metallic, terrifying smell…and taste…of blood.


	14. Hi Sequuntur Somnia

**Author's Note:** Hello everyone! Just a head's up that this chapter (yet again) has an incredibly strong violence and sexuality warning for it. Things probably aren't going to calm down very much, but I feel it pertinent to warn people ahead of time! (Granted, the moments of both things are recounted/imagined, but there'll still there, so be aware!) Hope you all enjoy this installment! This marks the end of the writing that I've done ahead, so there might be slightly longer gaps between postings as I get caught up again. Stay tuned!

* * *

Ruby stirred a bit, feeling her processor throbbing a bit. If she didn't get a good rest in soon, she knew she was going to run out of power when it was least convenient. She shifted a bit, but was surprised when she felt she was alone on the platform. She sat up, looking down, realizing that both Bonnet and Plushtrap were gone.

"Bonnet? Plushtrap?" she called out a bit, looking around the room, but it was empty, and silent. She got up off of the platform and went to the door. It was ajar just enough that the two of them could have slipped through.

Almost immediately, to her relief, she could hear their combined giggles coming from down the corridor. She let out a small sigh of relief. "You two are going to be little troublemakers, aren't you…" she murmured a bit, following the sounds.

"You're going to have to catch us, Ruby…!" Bonnet's small voice called down to her, the two of them scampering off. Ruby quickened her pace a bit.

"C'mon you two, we can't play like this, if the Puppet sees that Plushtrap isn't with me he won't be happy…!" she called out. But the two of them didn't seem to care, and kept playing their small game of tag with her. They were quick little boogers, waiting for her at corners and taking off with a small laugh. Ruby couldn't help but chuckle a bit, hearing their innocent little chatter and giggles.

As she rounded a corner towards the back rooms, however, she suddenly heard…nothing. It was suddenly deathly silent. She paused, listening for them. "You guys…? Where did you go…?" she called out. Her response was a sudden, shrill, terrified scream from Bonnet.

Ruby immediately took off in that direction, running towards the corridor they'd vanished into. She ran down to the end, where she saw the stairs…the same stairwell that Fredbear, or rather, Golden Freddy had attacked her from.

In the middle of the corridor was Bonnet's small form…ripped in half.

Ruby let out a sound of horror, and rushed to her, but Bonnet's optics were black. She couldn't even process it; she just sunk to her knees, too terrified to even touch her. Oil and other fluids were seeping onto the floor, dark and shimmering.

"Let go of me…!" Plushtrap's voice suddenly shrieked; she jolted her expression back up from Bonnet, only to see Springtrap there, holding the smaller animatronic in one arm. He didn't respond, instead just grinning towards Ruby.

"Well, well…so now you know the whole truth, don't you, Ruby…? It's a shame…you just had to make me kill two children all over again, didn't you…?" he chimed. He suddenly gripped Plushtrap's head as he thrashed, and in one rough, horrific movement, snapped it all the way around…and ripped it clean off of his body. Plushtrap's optics froze in a completely widened position and died when the last wire was severed.

Ruby let out a scream and felt everything inside of her seem to…freeze, that was the only way she could describe it. It was like her mind, her processor, just couldn't…accept what she was seeing. Springtrap let out a throaty laugh, tossing Plushtrap's body and severed head to his sides, before he started to approach her.

"Well…you must not be feeling all too well, hmm, Ruby…?" he said to her, coyly; her body seemed to move before her mind could tell it took, as she scrambled to her feet and staggered back from him. "After all…you've failed so many that you claimed to love…you let your mother die…and now Bonnet, and Plushtrap…"

"No…no…" Ruby said, feeling herself spiral; she couldn't comprehend it. Her foot suddenly stepped back into a puddle of…something. She turned slowly, suddenly recognizing the one scent she could still recall…

Abigail's body laid, broken, in a pool of blood. Her head was almost completely mauled, aside from her face, which stared in horror towards the ceiling, her eyes half-hanging out of her sockets due to the puncture of the spring locks. Her skull was broken, cracked, leaking blood and brain matter from the rods that had pierced it. Her neck was contorted from being forced to follow the trajectory of the rods. She looked so broken, she almost looked…alien, her body contorted in impossible ways.

"NO…!" Ruby screamed out, gripping her face so hard in her hands that she could feel the metal structure of it start to bend. Springtrap suddenly grabbed her wrists and forced them away from her face.

"Shhh…it's all right…" Ruby paused, startled by the sudden tenderness in his voice. When she opened her eyes, everything was gone; all of the carnage had vanished, and they were standing in a small room with charging platforms, like the one she rested in.

"But they…I saw them…they were all dead…"

"Death is just a part of life, Ruby..." Springtrap replied simply, as though he hadn't seen or done it all himself. "Don't you hate all of this pain…? You take so much of it onto yourself…carrying it for others…burdening yourself with their anguish…"

It felt so surreal; he spoke so calmly, with tenderness, even if deep down she knew it was completely feigned.

"You killed them…" she said, her voice shaking.

"No…you let me kill them…you promised to protect them, but you didn't…did you…?" he replied, stroking her chin, making her face him. "But it's all right…you're no different from the others…none of them could protect those they loved either…"

Ruby just shuddered; an overwhelming urge to just…die, then and there, came over her. She hated herself, she felt every bit of pain that they felt – that all of them felt – coursing through her. It was unbearable and she felt like she couldn't see straight anymore. Springtrap's soothing voice reached her.

"Don't you want the pain to stop, Ruby…? Don't you want to forget…" his voice purred; it felt like it was stroking every ache and pain within her. "I can just as easily give you respite as readilyas I can take away…what do you want…?"

"I want…to forget…" she struggled to get out. "I can't…I can't take this pain…I can't do it…!" she cried out; she thought that admitting it would relieve her of her guilt, of her internal torment, of that endless sinking and twisting that went on inside of her…but it didn't. Instead, it felt like there was a vice grip over her chest, crushing the life out of her.

She heard Springtrap let out a faint laugh, and realized that the agony was coming from him; she watched in a sort of diluted panic as his hand seemed to…reach into her, his hand seeming to simply materialize through her chest plate…and he ripped out a part of her, violently, though her physical body didn't seem to change or be damaged. Oddly though…the pain came to a grinding halt when he removed whatever it is he had grasped.

At first, she thought it was a heart – a human heart – as it dripped crimson fluid onto the floor; but as the 'blood' washed away, she saw what looked like a faint, glowing orb within his hand, no bigger than a large marble. It pulsated with a strange, emanating light. A sharp, unforgiving bleakness came over her, as though he had opened a gaping void inside of her.

"I-is that…?" she choked out, seeing him cradle it gently in his hand.

"Your soul…" he purred, eyeing it with a beastly hunger, carefully stroking the edges of it as it recoiled from his touch. "Do you remember what I said…when you were first dragged down here, Ruby…?"

Ruby just stammered, unable to find words. It was like he'd stolen everything from inside of her; her resolve, her thoughts…even her heart. She couldn't feel much of anything, now.

"I'm going to make you implore me…to make you hollow…to embrace being broken, and devoid of everything but what I deem…essential…"

Ruby felt her body convulse and move without her consent as he suddenly grasped her soul tightly; she could only watch in an aghast silence as darkness poured from the palm of his hand, and consumed her faded soul.

Immediately she felt waves of different, appalling, awful emotions and sensations; she let out a raspy, violent hiss as anger flooded through her, her body distorting with hatred, every fiber seeming to stiffen and wretch. It passed thankfully, but she could still feel all of them welling up inside of her. Hatred, mingled with a desire for cruelty, and…a frightful, but enveloping dependency and lust for… _him_.

She stepped back, shaking, still spasming, trying to fight it off. Those feelings were consuming her, bit by bit, and her last gasp of resistance faded. Suddenly…there was nothing left, but those things…and fear. Fear that found its way into all of her, making her shudder; she no longer hated him…she only feared him, the only break in this thrall of terror being that centered, intense yearning. Before, those fleeting moments of his enticement had made her sick, but now…there was nothing to prevent them.

She felt nothing even as he suddenly lifted what blackened, gnarled remains there were of her soul, and devoured it in one hungry gulp. He chuckled a bit, tapping his chest-plate. "They always taste best…when they're corrupted…" he hissed out. "And now…"

Ruby let out a small sound, mostly of surprise, as he suddenly lurched forward and pinned her to the ground. It felt so cold, and she could see more of that same…darkness, that had streamed from him, forming around them. Everything had darkened in this room in its entirety; she felt like she were staring up into an endless void. Springtrap chortled deeply as he held down her arms, reveling in the fear that exuded from her. It was all she could feel, that…and that burning warmth in her abdomen, again…

Springtrap leered down at her, eyeing her up and down as he released her arms. She was too petrified to move, and the desire to escape was simply gone. He trailed his hands down her form, gliding them over her seams, before he rested one over the panel between her legs, causing her to let out a strangled whimper.

"Ah…you're so untouched, and chaste…Ruby…even without that meddlesome soul, there's still something so…pure, about you…" he growled, gutturally; he looked like he would devour her next, with the gaze he gave her…but she knew what he really wanted. He deftly shifted the panel apart, delving a servo deep inside of her, causing her to arch her back and let out a pointed moan, her whole form shivering.

Springtrap seemed pleased with this, twisting his servo a bit and touching her sensually, licking his lips as he watched her pant and writhe. He gently eased her legs apart as they instinctively started to press together. "Shhh…just relax…" he half-whispered to her; he ceased pleasuring her, removing his servo and then sliding down her body. His heavy weight and warmth seemed to press her further down, into the darkness that had overtaken wherever they were. He smirked to her toothily, shifting himself so that their hips were pressed together. He leaned down and licked along her neck, letting his teeth scrap along her metal 'flesh' as they both started to pant; it was then that she could feel the warmth in her grow, and suddenly felt his arousal pressed against her.

One last tiny, pitiful spark of fight welled up in her, feeling him flush against her and prepared to enter her…to take her while she had so little will left. He seemed to anticipate this, however, as she suddenly tried to force him off of her. He snarled a bit, pinning her shoulders down as he stared down at her, baring his teeth, before he just…smiled, eerily, down at her.

"Do you truly think that you can escape this darkness, now…?" he purred to her; it had filled the area around them, twisting, shifting and changing like the shadows were alive. "Once you're mine, Ruby…I will never allow you to leave me, or escape me… _you'll never see the light of another day again_ …"

With that, he suddenly leaned down, wrapping his arms around her tightly to keep her from resisting him yet again, biting down hard onto her neck as she suddenly felt him violently force himself inside of her.

Ruby let out a terrified shriek, feeling the anguish of it course through her…and then found her face hitting the floor. Her world spun a bit as she groaned slightly, rubbing her head as she pushed herself up onto her elbows. She was still shaking from head to toe, and that pain, that emptiness she'd felt…it was still coursing through her, though it faded as she realized it had just been a nightmare.

 _'_ _Just' a nightmare…'_

Ruby managed to get herself up, and looked at the recharge platform. Bonnet and Plushtrap were still asleep on the platform. Plushtrap was sprawled out comically with his mouth half open, with Bonnet nuzzled up against him, her head on his chest. As cute as it was, however, Ruby couldn't get the images of them ripped to pieces out of her mind.

She about jumped through the ceiling, though, when she heard a soft pounding on the door. She was so unnerved that she feared she wasn't truly awake yet. Relief swept over her, however, when she heard Foxy's comforting drawl on the other side of the door.

"Lass? Ye in thar?" he called in, softly. "Ye wanted ta talk ta me, but I didn' want ta wake ye…"

Ruby got up, and went to the door; she could tell she looked like a wreck with how startled he was in seeing her in this state. "Lass, w'as wrong? Ye look like ye've jus' boarded a ghost ship…" he chided a bit, trying to lighten the mood, though he cupped her face in his hand and looked at her worriedly nonetheless.

"J-just…a…a bad nightmare…" she stuttered. It was still so fresh in her mind that she had trouble comprehending it wasn't real, and that she was safe.

Foxy frowned, glimpsing the two little ones. "Le's talk, ye an' I…we'll jus' lock tha door ta here so the Puppet can't complain bout the anklebiter…" he said; Ruby nodded, as both of them were passed out, so they likely wouldn't be awake for some time. She stepped out of the room, and Foxy used one of the generic key cards around the complex to lock the door, shuffling it back into a pocket. He offered her his arm, giving her a small smile. Ruby did her best to return it as she took his arm, though she knew it had to look pretty pathetic.

"Aye prolly don' need ta venture much of a guess as ta who was in yer nightmare…" Foxy said, knowingly. "He's been a plague on our lot of dreams fer years now, ye know…"

"I can imagine…" Ruby said. "He said…so many terrible things to me, down there…and he meant every word of them, Foxy. He's not going to stop…not until…not until he's gutted everything out of me and molded me into his perfect little plaything…" her voice started to tremble, his words and threats echoing in her mind.

Foxy paused, and gripped her shoulder in his hand, resting his hook harmlessly on her other shoulder. "Tha's no way ta talk, lass…" he said, but his expression softened slightly, seeing the fear in her optics. "He's...really sent ye to the sharks, in here, hasn't he…?" he asked, touching her head.

"I want…to be brave. I want to believe that I won't…that I won't let him break me. He's taken so much from me already and I'm still here, Foxy…I can still remember being Laurel, even if it's faint…but I know how he is. He won't stop, he won't be satisfied until he's done what he's said he's going to, and anything else unspoken that he has planned…"

"He wants ye ta give up, Ruby…" Foxy said; he used his hook to gently lift her gaze. She had a few faint tears still clinging to the outer edges of her optics. "It's his schtick…get inta yer head…make ye question if ye even can fight him…"

Ruby nodded, resting her hand over his and closing her eyes a moment. "You said…that Springtrap has…tormented each of you, in his… 'own special way'…and he's confirmed that to me, too…" she said, quietly. "What did he do to you, Foxy? And…and how did you come into being…? Plushtrap said that Michael only had…three friends…"

She didn't want to ask him, because she knew after Plushtrap's timeline of events, there was little in this place that wasn't tainted with violence or tragedy. But Foxy's…reluctance, at talking about Springtrap, about what happened here…it made her feel uneasy.

Foxy's expression darkened, and he let go of her, turning away slightly. "We don' talk on those things, lass…it's jus' best not ta stir tha chum…"

"Please stop with the pirate lingo for a moment and just be frank with me…" Ruby suddenly said, pleading with him. "I knew Springtrap was bad news when I first was attacked by him, as Laurel…but there's so much more to all of this than I ever could have guessed. Plushtrap…told me a lot of details that the Puppet didn't include…about…how everyone came into being here…" she said, quietly. Foxy didn't respond. "But…I don't know how I'm going to overcome this…hold he has on me…if no one else has been able to…he still…controls us, through fear, through knowing that he's down below, doing something awful…" she hung her head a bit.

Foxy was still silent for some time, but she eventually heard him speak, though it was very low. It sounded odd with how boisterous his voice typically was. He didn't face her, but he didn't speak with any aggression towards her either. He just sounded so…tormented.

"If Plushtrap's filled in tha blanks…ye already know that tha' kids that died…were the ones tha' were involved in killin' lil Jason…" he began. He sounded like he really didn't want to be talking about this, but he was forcing himself to, for her sake. "The other three…possessed tha spirits a' tha kids that were involved, but me…" he cut off, trying to think of what to say.

"I know that his older son Michael was the…little mastermind behind that…but Plushtrap said that he wasn't killed by William…something about…an affinity between sociopaths, that Michael shared in William's sadistic tendencies…"

Foxy was silent still. "Tha soul tha' brought me ta life…was someone tha' no one knew died, 'ere, tha' day…" Foxy said. "I don' remember…many memories, of who he was. But…he was a landlubber without a home…who slept jus' ous'side tha' pizzeria. Young fella, we think…prolly had somethin' goin' on in 'is mind, or some kinda plague tha' consumed 'im…but, he wasn' a bad fella. He wanted to get clean, get off tha' rough seas, eventually…" Foxy paused. "Tha day tha kids were killed…he was jus' outside tha' safe room, in the alleyway…"

 _Lawrence rubbed his head; that stale beer he'd shared with a fellow transient the night before had probably not been the best idea, but drinking where he could helped him deal with the withdrawal from the other things he'd done on the streets. If it meant that he could eventually stop that shit, he was happy to suffer a small hangover the next day and some stale breath._

 _He clambered up and stretched, knowing that the workers at the shelter would probably lecture him again; they meant well, but he always felt like a failure returning dried blood caked in his elbow joints or the smell of cheap beer seeping from his pores. He'd just found it easier to park his ratty old sleeping bag in this alleyway at night. Plus, they tossed out a lot of pizza slices that hadn't sold before closing, so they were often unsoiled on the tops of the dumpsters. It beat some of the stuff at the shelter._

 _He glimpsed a clock at a business down the road; 1pm. Had he really slept that long? Damn, he had to get going; he'd promised his case worker he'd at least snag a couple applications before he returned today. He rolled up his bag, and was just about to head back there for a much-needed shower…when he heard the screams. He froze, realizing they were coming from the building beside him. He knew there were kids in there all the time; the parents often shot him wary gazes and glares when they'd pass the alley if he were mulling around in there. But this sounded different from the muted cries and shrieks of playing and goofing around. They were close…and they were utterly terrified._

 _He looked up, realizing that they were coming from whatever room he was sleeping beside. He could hear screams and sickening sounds of something…splattering, of something metallic swinging through the air. He immediately scrambled up onto the garbage cans, and forced the window open into the building. Without thinking, he pushed himself in and looked around._

"When he managed ta…get inside…it was already too late…" Foxy said, softly. "Tha kids were all thar…lyin' on tha' floor…bleedin' from wounds along thar necks…" Ruby saw him starting to shake; she'd never even seen him show a shred of fear in her whole time here. "Some a' them still…shakin'…rattlin'…in thar death throes…and he was still thar…in tha' suit…"

 _"_ _What…what have you done?!" Lawrence shouted; he actually wretched, tasting the sour vomit in his throat, burning from the alcohol. "You…you killed all of these kids…!"_

 _The murderer's expression was indiscernible, inside of the Spring Bonnie suit; instead, all he saw were a pair of cold, yellow eyes staring at him. Then…a low, throaty chuckle emerged from inside of it. "You know…it'd probably be a bit more pertinent to be worried about yourself…but, I'm quite grateful you decided to come and try to play hero. Too bad you came just a few seconds too late…you might have been able to save one or two…"_

 _Lawrence felt like he was going to faint; the entire room was filling with the putrid smell of fresh blood, and the sound of it gurgling from their throats made him gag. He stepped back, seeing the murderer approach him, the cleaver still grasped in his hand, blood dripping from it. "And why would you be grateful?!" Lawrence suddenly spat, his voice rasp with horror._

 _"_ _Because…when all your bodies have eventually rotted, and someone finally discovers what happened here…your presence is going to provide a nice little exoneration for me…" he chuckled. "After all…some filthy hobo's rotted remains found in a pizzeria alongside of several childrens'…hmm…I do wonder who the police will blame…"_

 _Lawrence's eyes widened, and he shuddered, crumpling against the wall. His urge to escape was filling him, causing him to look side to side. But the murderer was blocking the only exit; the window that he'd come in through was too high for him to reach without him being seized. He had nowhere to run._

 _"_ _Heh…you aren't too old yourself…are you…? Regretting that decision to run away from home and whatever life you had now, aren't you?" the murderer said to him; Lawrence trembled at how nonchalant and steady his voice was, as though he were making a normal conversation._

 _"_ _Nothing else to say…? That's just as well…I don't need to know anything else about you other than that no one's really going to look for you…" He stepped heavily towards Lawrence, who just shook, feeling his eyes burn with tears. The fear and anguish was too much, both knowing that he was going to die and also that he'd been too late to help. If he hadn't been in that drunken stupor outside, too preoccupied with his headache, he could have…_

 _The murderer paused in front of him…and he was surprised when he suddenly dropped the knife he'd used on the kids to the ground. It landed with a clatter that made him jump. He felt confused for only a second, however, before the murderer suddenly gripped his head tightly in his hands. It felt like he were being pressed alive in a vice grip, their hold on him was so strong._

 _The murderer laughed again, lowly, his voice distorted by the suit and now sounding…inhuman. "These suits are much stronger than we are…all it takes…is one quick snap…"_

 _…_ _and Lawrence was gone._

Foxy lowered his head. "His body was…eventually found…buried under unused crates…in tha' safe room…by then, he wasn' much more'n bones and a lil rot…an' he was blamed…fer all thar deaths…" his voice cracked a bit, but he seemed to regain his composure. "It took…years…fer me ta' be able…ta stop feelin' guilty…fer not stoppin' 'im…it's why…why I did everythin' I could…ta protect tha' others…but…"

Ruby moved closer, rested a hand on his shoulder. "Please, Foxy…if it…if it hurts too much…"

"No…it…it has ta hurt, Ruby…" he rested his hand over hers; his grip was strong, like he was forcing himself to do this, but knew that he had to. "Yer right…thar's no…no point in tryin' ta forget…even if it…even if it hurts…" he replied. She just gave him an empathetic look and held his hand tightly in her own.

"As fer…wha' Springtrap did…ta…torment me, in particular…tha' came while William was still alive…when he returned ta' tha' pizzeria…"

"You mean…when…when he destroyed your original bodies…?" Ruby asked, her own voice crackling a bit now.

"He…he pretended to be Fredbear…an' he…he lured the others away first…I was such a cantankerous ass, an' I kept ta myself, in Pirate Cove…I didn' know he was thar…an' I knew somethin' was wrong, an' yet…ah still followed him, too…"

 _Foxy couldn't move. He couldn't even fully…comprehend, seeing them all there, in pieces. Their optics still flickered a bit as their internal processors scrambled futilely to try and keep them alive. They had been cut into literal pieces with such ferocity that it was hard to tell where one body started and another began aside from tatters of faux fur here and there. Twisted bits of metal intermingled with where he could still see the faintest hints of bloodstains…_

 _"_ _How many times will you have to be told… **you can't…save them…** "_

 _He barely even registered the voice before the axe suddenly met with his neck, all but fully severing his head from his body. That amount of trauma ended his consciousness immediately, before he could answer._

Foxy spasmed, thinking he was feeling that vicious blow once again and stiffening, only to realize it was Ruby, embracing him from behind as she saw him crumpling. She was crying a bit, her tears warm against his back. "I'm so sorry…" she choked out.

Foxy shivered a bit still, but her embrace gave him another small memory that played out like a faded video in his mind…and yet, it still felt so real, as though it had just happened.

 _"_ _Arrrr, are ye havin' fun lil lass?" Foxy asked, bending down on one knee to talk to a particularly bouncy and happy little girl._

 _"_ _I always have fun when I'm here Foxy!" she squeaked, looking at him excitedly._

 _"_ _Tha's always good ta hear, poppet…was' yer name…?" he asked, giving her head a quick, but affectionate pat. He'd seen her several times at the pizzeria, always looking like she was about to burst with how excited she was to be there._

 _She suddenly got a bit shy, still smiling at him sweetly as she shuffled on her feet. "My name's Laurel…"_

 _"_ _Tha's a pretty name ye 'ave thar, Laurel…you be good now, savvy? An' stay safe, okay?"_

 _"_ _I'm always safe as long as you're around Foxy, you're my favorite!" she proclaimed, suddenly leaping forward and hugging his leg tightly._

 _Foxy normally didn't feel comfortable when the kids touched him or tried to hug him, still plagued by other memories…but her hug was so genuine and loving. He couldn't help but smile, and rest his hand on her head._

 _"_ _I'll protect ye lass…ye can always count on tha'…"_

Foxy felt himself choke up, faintly, and suddenly turned and held her close, burying his face in against her shoulder. She actually squeaked a bit at how quickly he did this, though her embrace didn't falter whatsoever. She felt him shudder, just slightly, and felt a small warm spot or two where a couple tears fell onto her.

"I couldn't...protect them, lass…or ye…" he said. His voice now was breaking with static interspersed throughout it. "I'm so…so sorry…I've failed so many times, been tha worst protector thar can be…all I wanted was ta keep them safe…but I couldn't…save them…an' I couldn' stop Springtrap from takin' ye…"

"Foxy…" Ruby said; now her optics were completely fogged with moisture, to where she could barely see. All she could do was hold him as close to her as possible. "It's not your fault…you did everything you could…I…I couldn't save my mom, either…" her voice shook. "There's just…some things…you can't stop, or change…I'm doing everything I can…to tell myself that, but I know deep down…that that guilt isn't ever going to go away. I'll never stop asking myself, inwardly…why she had to die, and I got to live…" she paused, but managed to pull away just enough that she could look at him. He looked so crushed, but he was listening to her. "But…also deep down inside…I know that she wouldn't want me to live with it…she'd want me to find happiness where I can, and she'd want me to move on…I know that it's so much easier said than done, and there's really no full way to do it…but you can't keep burdening yourself with that guilt. You've done so much for all of them, Foxy…you've kept them safe over the years, and even now you do. You only think of the two times that that you couldn't…he's likely been trying to do all these awful things and couldn't because you were here. But you'd never know, because he didn't succeed…" she explained, trying to console him. "I know that it's easy for me to say…I haven't been through anywhere near as much as all of you have, but…please, please don't do this to yourself…I know it'll take time and healing, but…you're still the same brave Foxy I always loved and believed in…"

Foxy's expression softened, and he mustered a small smile, even if it was a bit sad. He leaned in, and pressed a tender kiss to her forehead. He lingered on it, however, for a bit, and Laurel felt her face warm a bit. "Ye were always…such a sweet, innocent lass…" he said, after a moment; his voice was low, but gentle and amiable.

Ruby couldn't help but chuckle a bit. "Heh…my teachers and even my mom might have disagreed with you at times…" she said.

"Even now…" he said; he wrapped his arms around her and held her close. "Ye could've been tryin' ta jus' escape…but ye…ye want ta help us…even though…it means you could lose even more…tha's sacrifice tha'…I haven' seen in a long time…"

Ruby smiled a bit, and this time rested her head on his shoulder. "You all meant a lot to me, growing up…and now…now that I know more of what happened here…it's just made me all the more resolved…we'll find a way, to stop him…it might…it might be extremely hard, and to be honest…I'm not sure how it's possible, at times…but we'll figure it out, together…"  
"Aye, we will, Laurel…" Foxy said. He was about to continue, but they suddenly heard what sounded like a small sniffle come from down the corridor. Ruby at first thought maybe it was Bonnet looking for her, but remembered the door was locked; she looked up and over his shoulder, and Foxy turned around.

Freddy, Chica, and Bonnie were all standing there; Chica had been the one who sniffled a bit, and the other two looked heartbroken.

"Oh Foxy…why didn't you…tell us that's how you felt, all these years…?" Freddy's deep voice said, softly.

"Ye scallywags were listenin'?!" Foxy said, a bit incredulous, though his indignant anger faded almost immediately. "I…I didn' wan'…ta trouble ye…or dredge more salt into our wounds…" he said; his voice crackled a bit again.

Ruby and Foxy both stood, and he turned to face them. "I felt like such a failure…I couldn' stop 'im from killin' those kids…an' I couldn' stop 'im from dismantlin' ye…"

"Foxy…you know that wasn't your fault…" Bonnie said. "There was nothing that you could have done…we were the ones, in both cases…that trusted him. If we hadn't…things would have turned out differently, I imagine…"

"You've done everything you can since then to make sure that we're safe here, and that we know we're safe…that's all we could ever ask…" Chica said.

Foxy didn't look like he knew what to say; the sadness that had consumed him before seemed to melt away, and he gave them all a sad, slightly broken, but genuine smile.  
"Ye can' make me cry like this…" he murmured, reaching up to wipe the tear out of his optic. Before he was done, however, he let out a small yelp of surprise as the three of them suddenly stepped forward and all embraced him tightly.

"You know nothing could ever make us hate you, you salty old sea dog…" Freddy said with a chuckle.

Foxy couldn't say anything; he half wanted to make a witty comeback or joke, but…he was just too overwhelmed. Instead, he just leaned into their embraces, basking in the warmth from them for now.

Ruby smiled, feeling warmed herself by seeing the four of them together; it was a relieving feeling, something other than sadness or anger. Freddy lifted his head a bit, and looked at her, before smiling and extending a hand. Ruby stepped forward and took it, and he pulled her into their embrace.

She felt so…safe. So warm, and content. It brought back brief, but sweet, flashes of memories of being a child, and coming here. She could remember having so much fun, dancing with them, singing along to all their songs, giggling as she followed them around the pizzeria without a care in the world.

She held onto it as though her life depended on it, knowing that these memories, these feelings, were what would save her – and all of them – from the darkness of this place.


End file.
